Five to Twelve
by GraphiteGirl
Summary: Peeta lets it slip that Katniss can sing and puts in motion events that change a nation. Canon-divergent but not AU. Opens a few months before "The Hunger Games" begins. Rated M for language, violence, sexual content. Suzanne Collins, Scholastic, Inc. and Lionsgate created and own the entire THG universe. The banner/artwork with this story is my own. I tumblr at shewhodraws.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: Many, many thanks to dandelion sunset, francatwild and chelziebelle for being such amazing betas!**

**Prologue—The observant one**

Starvation, beatings, verbal and emotional abuse—these were the only things that Marigold Mellark had given to any of her sons for as long as Peeta could remember. He did not remember a time when she had held him close, told him she loved him, or showed any pride in his achievements. Peeta had stopped expecting her affections when he was small, maybe four or five years of age.

However, he didn't stop _wanting_ his mother's affections until a cold, rainy afternoon when he was eleven-years-old. Mrs. Mellark was screeching at somebody out their back door, "You filthy thing! Get off my property or I'm calling the Peacekeepers! I am sick to death of Seam brats like you pawing through my trash!" Curious, Peeta looked out to see who it was, and what he saw nearly made his heart stop.

Katniss Everdeen was stumbling away from the bakery trash cans where she had obviously been foraging for food. As his mother stormed back inside, he saw Katniss collapse underneath their apple tree. She was soaking wet and had to be freezing. He expected her to get back up, but instead she just wrapped her arms around herself and glanced up at the bakery before putting her head on her knees.

Peeta knew things had been bad for Katniss since her father had died a few months earlier in a coal mine explosion. She'd been coming to school looking unkempt, and sometimes she didn't bring a lunch to eat. He'd heard her mother had gone mad with grief_, _but surely she'd snap out of it soon, wouldn't she? Even as Katniss grew thin and quiet, he still thought of her as being the confident, happy little girl his father had pointed out to him on their very first day of school. Farl Mellark told his son how he had been in love with her mother but she'd chosen to marry a coal miner. When Peeta asked why, his father said, "Because when he sings... even the birds stop to listen."

Peeta thought that was the stupidest thing he'd ever heard, until later that day. The little girl with two braids stood tall on a chair, in front of _everybody_, and sang so beautifully that the birds really had stopped to listen. He remembered the look in her eyes. _Sparkly_, he thought, _her eyes are sparkly_. From that day forward, she had owned Peeta's heart.

Now, the vibrant, spirited girl he had loved through the years had become a walking skeleton too weak to stand. The sparkle in her eyes had been replaced with defeat. Katniss had accepted her death. He could see it. And his mother was going to let her die in their own yard.

Peeta felt like something deep inside of him had cracked open. He waited until his mother's back was turned and quietly pushed two nearly-finished loaves directly into the fire. They were expensive artisan loaves, cooked in a wood-burning stove and filled with nuts and dried fruit. They were popular sellers among the Merchant class, but Peeta himself had only tasted it once. When his father taught him how to make it, they'd eaten a loaf at dinner that night. Peeta knew it was the kind of bread that filled you up.

When the loaves were scorched just enough that they couldn't sell, he removed them with tongs. Preparing himself for what he knew was coming, he showed the bread to his mother. He felt the blow from the rolling pin on his face but it only registered physically. Mentally and emotionally, he was under the tree with Katniss. His mother called him stupid and told him to feed the ruined bread to the pigs, as he knew she would.

Katniss was still huddled underneath their tree. She raised her head and looked at him as he walked to the pig pen but he didn't dare look back at her. If his mother found out, this was all for nothing. He tore off the end of the more seriously burned loaf and threw it to the pigs. He checked to make sure his mother was not looking, then he threw the loaves towards Katniss and walked back into the bakery. When he looked outside a few minutes later, Katniss and the bread were gone.

One whole side of his face throbbed with pain and the heat of the ovens was making it worse. Later that day, Peeta's father saw his eye and brought him upstairs. (Farl Mellark rarely prevented his sons' injuries but he had become quite adept at treating them.) Peeta quietly told him everything. His father looked very sad but said nothing as he placed a cold compress on his son's eye and gave him willow bark tea. It tasted awful but helped ease the pain a bit.

Peeta never wanted his mother's attention or approval again after that. He had seen her for what she really was—a small-minded, cruel woman who would have let a child starve to death in her own yard and been glad. As he got older, he realized that his mother foolishly believed that being a Merchant family put their social standing just one small step below President Snow. Peeta knew better, though. People from the Capitol made no distinction between Merchant and Seam—to them, _everybody_ in District 12 was a hillbilly.

Since that day, Peeta had also kept his eye on the girl from the Seam. The day after he threw the bread, he was sporting a shiner that covered half his face but Katniss was looking better than she had been in a long time. She caught him staring at her after school; her gray eyes were so piercing that he had to look away. A moment later he glanced back, but she was staring at a dandelion, which she picked before running off with her sister.

Over the next several months, he watched her regain some (but never all) of the weight she had lost. She must have started hunting like her father had, because she began trading squirrels with his father. "Always right through the eye," his father would remark. He'd heard she was also trading at the Hob, District 12's black market. He even started seeing her mother around town occasionally, and Katniss and her little sister, Prim, looked like they were being better cared for.

Nobody ever saw Katniss with her bow and arrow, but everybody knew she was an accomplished huntress. One Saturday afternoon when Peeta was 13 years old, one of the Peacekeepers, Purnia, came in to make some purchases. She told Peeta and his father how Katniss had shown up at the Hob that morning with a lynx pelt. "I don't know what she did with the meat, but I bet that cat weighed a good 40 pounds. I'll tell you what. If I ever have to go into those godforsaken woods, I'm not even gonna bother with my sidearm. I'm gonna bring Katniss Everdeen. Yes, sir." Peeta was so proud of Katniss. Peacekeepers thought _she_ could protect _them_.

As they grew older, Katniss regained some of the spirit and confidence she'd had as a child, but—it was different now. _She_ was different. Her gray eyes no longer sparkled; now they held fire. She never raised her hand in class, but if she was called upon she always had the right answer. She wasn't shy, but she didn't talk much. Her face was an open book. Peeta could usually see exactly what Katniss was feeling at any given moment—usually anger, sadness or suspicion—but since she never talked, he didn't know why.

The biggest change in Katniss, though, was that she had become so... self-contained. His Katniss had grown fierce. She didn't seem to need anybody. The other girls at school were all about trying to get the attention of one or more boys. They worried about clothes and hair and who was seeing who and all of that. Katniss, on the other hand, dressed as if she expected that she might need to climb a tree at a moment's notice. She wore pants, boots, and what he was nearly certain were her father's old shirts.

Katniss was definitely a late bloomer. When school ended last year, she could have passed for an undernourished 12 or 13 year old, even though she was 15. But when school started up again in the fall, well, Peeta knew he was in for a long year. On the first day of school, he and his friend, Will, were talking at lunch. They were having a fairly involved discussion about what to expect from the new wrestling coach when Will stopped talking mid-sentence. He was staring at something over Peeta's shoulder. Peeta turned to look and felt a bolt of desire flash through his body.

Katniss Everdeen had grown up.

She was walking in their direction, looking for a place to eat lunch. Katniss was a good bit taller than she had been, although still tiny compared to most of the other girls their age. She had also grown small, high breasts that bounced a little with every step. She was wearing pants—she nearly always did—but instead of hanging on her like an old sack, they clung to her thighs and hips. The belt she wore accentuated her tiny waist and when she turned her back to them to talk to Madge Undersee, she gave them a lovely view of her very round, very firm bottom. Will whispered to Peeta, "Who knew a girl in trousers would get a 9.5 on the peter-meter? Man, I hope she starts a trend."

Like any other boy his age, Peeta had sexual fantasies. It was rare for him to go more than a day without having to stroke himself to orgasm. But his fantasies up to this point in his life had always been fairly vague and rarely included Katniss. She was so pure, so perfect, and he loved her with his entire soul. It felt wrong to objectify her like that. Besides, he was 15. He didn't need much imagination; all he needed was about 3 minutes alone.

Those days were over. As it turned out, Peeta's imagination had an _astounding_ variety of suggestions about Katniss, now that she was smoking hot. He nearly failed chemistry that first quarter because Katniss' gym class ran track just outside his classroom window. She wore these little shorts and a t-shirt, and like most kids from the Seam she ran barefoot. Katniss was faster than every single girl and nearly all of the boys, and when she ran, her braid would fly out behind her and everything on her body _bounced_.

No, the days of Katniss being too pure to star in his fantasies were long gone.

Katniss, as always, seemed totally oblivious to how people reacted to her. If she did notice anybody looking at her for too long, she'd scowl, and that was usually enough to scare them off. (Although Peeta did notice that when she caught _him_ staring, she didn't scowl.) Katniss, as she had for years now, kept her walls up and nobody from school was allowed in, except for possibly Madge Undersee, who was quiet as a mouse. Soon enough, people even began to wonder if Katniss liked girls—that is, until she started spending time with Gale Hawthorne.

Gale Hawthorne. Peeta wasn't entirely sure what Gale exactly was to Katniss. He knew she didn't have any brothers, but maybe they were cousins. They sure looked an awful lot alike, what with the gray eyes, the dark hair, and the olive skin. They never seemed to flirt with each other or act in any sort of romantic way. No hand holding or trips to the slag heap.

On the other hand, she was with Gale _all the time_. They hunted together, they traded together, he was pretty certain they went to the Hob together. If nothing else, Katniss _trusted_ Gale. And since her father had died, Peeta had only seen her smile for two people—her sister Prim and Gale Hawthorne.

Gale was tall, good-looking, from the Seam, and he could hunt. He was probably perfect for her. Peeta tried very hard not to resent the guy. It wasn't Gale's fault that Peeta lacked the courage to talk to Katniss.

And really, that's what it all came down to—his lack of courage. Peeta loved her so much that the thought of her rejection made his palms sweat and his eyes burn. He knew he was being foolish. He knew that if he talked to her, she would either reject him or she wouldn't. Either way, he'd have his answer and could move on with his life, right? There was no shortage of pretty girls around to keep Peeta company. After all, he might have been in love with Katniss Everdeen but he wasn't _dead_. If Katniss turned him down flat, he knew he'd be able to find consolation in the arms of any number of girls.

But that's all those girls would ever be—a consolation prize. Second best. Not enough. And Peeta knew what that did to a person. All he had to do was look at his mother. So Peeta continued to love her from afar and waited for something to happen that would push him into the path of Katniss Everdeen.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 1—Rye's announcement**

"Try and stop me, then. You can't beat me into submission anymore, woman."

Peeta watched his brother, Rye, and his mother, Marigold, face off against each other in the bakery's kitchen. The bakery was closed for the day and Peeta had finished his clean up. He could have left. He certainly didn't _want_ to be there. But Rye had told him ahead of time what he intended to do and asked him to stay. So there Peeta was, watching his mother realize that she no longer had any real control over Rye.

Mrs. Mellark looked shocked at her son's words. Her mouth hung open in disbelief before turning into an ugly slash of tight anger. "Maybe you didn't hear me, you worthless piece of shit. I. Said. No!"

"Maybe _you_ didn't hear _me_. I'm doing this," said Rye. His voice was quiet but firm. "And you can't do a damn thing about it." Rye leaned against the doorway with his arms folded across his chest.

Mrs. Mellark yelled, "How _dare_ you speak to me that way? I will not stand quietly by while my son brings shame to this family!"

'_Shame_', thought Peeta, s_he doesn't know the meaning of the word_. The abuse the Mellark boys had suffered over the years at the hands of their mother was common knowledge.

"A musician—" here she spat on the floor Peeta had just mopped-"is no better than a BUM! You might as well move to the Seam and join the mines!" Peeta tuned out her words and instead started thinking about painting this scene. He thought about how he would juxtapose the furious tension in his mother's body with the calm, satisfied look of Rye's posture. His mother's face was the exact same color as the raspberry jam they used in some of their better pastries.

All three Mellark boys had a talent. Bannock, the oldest, carved wooden figurines. Rye played guitar. Peeta could draw and paint. Mrs. Mellark thought it was all effeminate nonsense. Still, she largely tolerated the boys' hobbies as long as they didn't let their grades slip, miss their shifts at the bakery, or talk about it to anyone lest the whole District think she was raising a bunch of, in her words, "candyasses."

Rye had just turned 18, though, and his birthday present to himself was to tell his mother that he had started a band. Mrs. Mellark, mostly out of habit, told him no. Now that Rye had pointed out that her permission was no longer required, she had become unhinged. Peeta wondered if it was going to come to blows.

Peeta knew that it wasn't Rye's decision to form a band that had Mrs. Mellark so upset. No, what had their mother all lathered up was Rye's _defiance_. Rye could have told her anything—he wanted to be a Peacekeeper, he wanted to apprentice with the butcher, he wanted to be a teacher—it wouldn't have mattered. Marigold would have still said no. This confrontation would have happened one way or another.

Rye kept his cool until Mrs. Mellark announced she would withhold his pay. Then he allowed some of his own frustration show.

"You don't pay me _now_!" he yelled. "How about I just move out and you can hire a full-time apprentice to replace me?"

Mrs. Mellark didn't have any argument against that. They all knew that the cost of room and board for Rye was a fraction of the cost of hiring a full-time apprentice.

Mrs. Mellark finally understood that she'd lost this round to Rye, so she turned on Peeta. "What are you looking at, you worthless, lazy boy? Why are you just standing there like some useless lump? Do you think this is funny?"

Peeta just shrugged at her. It didn't matter what he said, didn't matter that his work was finished, that he'd done nothing wrong. Marigold was going to have her piece of flesh and since she couldn't get it from Rye, she'd get it somewhere else. And right now, Peeta was the only other target within reach.

Years of abuse at her hands had taught him that it was better to just let her vent than to argue or hide. Otherwise, her rage would simmer for hours or even days only to erupt in violence. She didn't hit him very often anymore. At nearly 16 years of age, Peeta was almost as large as Rye. The larger he got, the less Marigold smacked him around.

But when she did hit him, she did it dirty-quietly, without warning, rolling pin in hand. Only after she'd gotten a good blow or two on him would she screech out her rationalizations for the punishment— "and THAT'S for not feeding the pigs on time/making too much noise/not sweeping the floor properly." The last beating had been about a month ago and the bruises on his upper back and shoulders still hadn't quite faded.

So, Peeta just stood there and pretended to pay attention while she raged on about his incompetence, his stupidity, how he was _just like_ his worthless father. Her words rolled off of him. Mostly.

After a while, Marigold ran out of steam. She said she was sick of the sight of them and she was sending them to bed without supper. Rye really wanted to put up a fight about it—he was an adult now, she couldn't just send him to his room—but he also wanted to get Peeta out of her line of fire.

The brothers went upstairs to their bedroom and closed the door.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 2—Parapraxis**

**Author's note: parapraxis is a term used in psychology to describe a slip of the tongue which is thought to reveal secret desires or unconscious opinions. It is more commonly called a Freudian slip.**

Rye and Peeta looked at each other for a moment. Peeta let out a breath that he wasn't even aware he had been holding and said, "It could have gone worse."

Rye nodded. Now that the confrontation was over, they both felt drained. Peeta had a headache behind his eyes. But at least there wasn't the awful grimness that used to hang over them when they were smaller and Marigold could really get her hands on them.

Rye pulled a basket out from under his bed. Inside were two wrapped sandwiches and two large flasks of water. The boys had learned to anticipate their mother's punishments a long time ago. She would not come back upstairs anytime soon; she was going to stand guard in the kitchen to make sure that neither of them tried to sneak the meal she thought she was denying them.

As they ate, Rye told Peeta about the band. Rye was in his last year of school and all the band members were in his class. Rye played guitar, obviously. Marsh Brocket, the butcher's kid, played flatpick guitar (Rye explained that meant Marsh used a pick and steel strings.) Dalton Cartwright played the bass. And Mandor Guy, son of the grocer, played both banjo and mandolin. They hadn't picked a name yet but they had started rehearsing a few weeks back. They knew a lot of bluegrass and district standards. Rye hoped to be playing by the Spring Festival, which was still several weeks away.

"Who sings?" Peeta asked.

Rye looked a little embarrassed. "Well…none of us, really. Marsh and Dalton can at least carry a tune but their voices aren't strong. And Mandor is as bad as I am." Peeta grinned at that. Rye had a truly awful singing voice. "I don't suppose you know any really good singers?" Rye asked, only half-joking.

Without thinking, Peeta said, "Katniss Everdeen has a beautiful voice." Then his eyes widened in horror over what he'd just said.

Katniss Everdeen was going to kill him. She was _intensely_ private. He didn't think she'd be too happy with him for bringing her to Rye's attention.

Rye looked at him like he was waiting for the punch line. Right around the time that Rye realized that Peeta was serious, Peeta tried to backtrack. "Forget it, though, seriously, Rye. She's got her little sister to take care of. Besides, I don't know if she'd be comfortable on stage, she'd just, you know…"

"Glare at people? Skin a squirrel? Field dress a deer?" Rye chortled. "Anyway, how on earth would you even know that Katniss Everdeen can sing?"

So, Peeta told Rye about his very first day of school. How their dad had pointed Katniss out and said he had wanted to marry her mother, but instead she' d run off with a coal miner with the beautiful voice. And how when Katniss sang for the school assembly later that day, the birds had stopped to listen. Peeta tried to relate this in a very bored, nonchalant sort of voice. Rye was having exactly none of it.

"Wait wait waaaaaaaaaait," he gasped with a look of pure glee on his face as he pointed at Peeta. "You _like_ her! You have a crush on _Katniss Everdeen_! Oh my god, Peet—you're _blushing_!" Rye then laughed himself hoarse while Peeta hissed at him to shut it. His laughter finally faded off with a "…of all the girls in the District…" Then he suddenly sat up straight, all business and said, "Seriously, though, she can sing?" Peeta nodded. "OK," said Rye. "I'm going to ask her."

Peeta spent the rest of the night trying to talk Rye out of it but Rye wasn't fazed by any of it. Defeated, Peeta finally made one last request, "Look, Rye. Just…keep my name out of it, OK?"

Rye smiled and said, "Wear something nice tomorrow. You're gonna help me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: Tons of goodwill, thanks and chesebuns to my amazing betas, dandelionsunset and francatwild.**

**Chapter 3—the job offer**

The day after her father was killed, 11-year-old Katniss Everdeen was in charge of herself, her little sister and her catatonic mother. She just didn't know it yet.

Why would she? She was a child. Her parents had always taken care of her, always been loving, always put her and Prim first. She had no reason to even suspect that her father's death would catapult her mother into a grief-induced stupor so profound that her daughters nearly starved to death in front of her while she stared into nothing. Katniss had no way to know that her first morning without her father was also her first morning without her mother.

But she learned it quickly enough.

The day that Peeta Mellark had saved her (and Prim and her mother) with the bread, it didn't occur to her that he may have burned those loaves on purpose. And when it _did_ occur to her the following day, she dismissed it. The entire district knew that Mrs. Mellark beat her sons. Peeta had to have known that burning bread would result in a beating. Why would he risk that for a girl he didn't even know?

Still, whether he'd done it on purpose or not, Katniss knew that those two loaves had stopped the spiral of despair and starvation she had been in. She did more than feed her family that day. Katniss started down the path to self-sufficiency. It was the following day when she had seen Peeta's battered face, and then the dandelion, that she remembered her father's lessons about foraging for food and hunting and and where he kept his bow and arrows in the woods.

Rosemary Everdeen, Katniss' mother, slowly came out of her stupor. It happened in fits and starts. She'd be present for an hour here or an hour there, then go back to bed and sleep for a couple of days. Those times were actually worse for Katniss than when Rosemary didn't respond at all. It was hard seeing Prim get her hopes up that their mother had returned to them, only to have her check out again for a few days. Eventually, though, she made a recovery of sorts. She was never again the radiant woman that Katniss remembered form her youth but at least she was present.

Rosemary had grown up as a Merchant kid, the daughter of the apothecary. Her parents had disowned her when she married a boy from the Seam but Rosemary never lost her knowledge. Now that she was coherent, she had set up a small business as a healer. It didn't pay well—most of their clients were from the Seam, after all—but Rosemary was good at her job and never turned anybody away.

In the years that followed, Katniss developed a routine that kept food on the table and a roof over their heads. Hunt with Gale. Go to school. Eat lunch with Madge. Go home. Eat supper. Sleep. It didn't leave much time for Katniss to do anything else and it wasn't always enough. Even with her and her mother's best efforts, they still sometimes went hungry. But it was as close to security as anything she'd had since before her father died.

The Mellark brothers were absolutely not a part of Katniss' routine.

Katniss and Madge had just started eating lunch when Madge said, "Why are those two coming over here?" Katniss looked up and saw Rye Mellark walking over to them, dragging a very flustered Peeta behind him.

"Everdeen. I hear you can sing," said Rye, with no preamble at all. Peeta tried to bolt but Rye forced Peeta into a chair and sat down next to him, never taking his eyes of Katniss. Peeta pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes while his face started cycling through several shades of red.

Katniss, who had been staring at Peeta with her mouth half open, turned her attention back to Rye. "What?"she asked, clearly confused.

"I said, I hear you can sing," said Rye. Peeta tried to escape by sliding under the table but Rye caught him halfway and pulled him back up into his seat. "Young Peeta here says you've got quite a voice," said Rye, clapping Peeta on the back. Peeta moved his hands to cover his whole face. All Katniss could see were two bright pink ears under his blond hair. "It was the sweetest thing, Everdeen. He got all poetic talking about it, didn't you, Peet?" Rye now had his arm around his little brother's shoulders and was talking to Peeta like he was four. "Here's how he put it. He said that when you sang, the birds stopped to listen. Didn't you, Peet?" There was a HUGE grin on Rye's face. She scowled at Rye, which made him look even happier.

Katniss decided that Rye and Peeta must be pulling some kind of joke on her. She was just about to tell them off when Madge said, "She can sing, actually. Katniss has a beautiful voice."

Katniss turned to stare at Madge, who shrugged and said, "You sing to yourself when we do homework." Rye started to look excited. Peeta slid his hands halfway down his face and shot Madge a look of profound gratitude.

Katniss asked, "Why do you care?" Rye told her about his bluegrass band, all Merchant boys. Katniss didn't know any of them very well but she knew some of their family members. Dalton's little sister, Delly, was in Katniss' class. Delly was a bit too cheerful for Katniss' taste but she was nice to everybody. Marsh was the butcher's kid and had seen Katniss sell rabbits to his mother. And then there were the Mellarks. Mr. Mellark bought her squirrels. She didn't know Mandor but at least he'd never been mean or rude to her.

Anyway, according to Rye, they were all quite good musicians. "So why can't one of you sing?" asked Katniss.

At this, Peeta removed his hands from his face, which was returning to its normal color and said, very solemnly, "Because it sounds like animals dying." Rye shrugged and nodded his head.

Katniss raised her eyebrows at Peeta. He held her gaze and she could see a twinkle in his blue eyes. In all the years they had gone to school together, he had never looked her in the eye for more than a moment. Maybe this wasn't a joke after all. "Why would I want to sing in your band?", she asked Rye.

"Well, obviously, if we are good enough, we'd make money. But nobody is going to hire us without a singer. And nobody is going to hire us twice without a _good_ singer."

"How much money, exactly?"

Madge actually knew the answer to that. "The band that played last year at the Harvest Festival received 600. That amount or more is probably going to be set aside for next month's Spring Festival. And the more elaborate toastings will usually pay a band 100 or so just to play a few songs."

Katniss frowned and looked off into the distance behind them, running numbers through her head. If this cut into her hunting and trading time, there was no point in doing it. She faced Rye and asked, "What would I need to do, exactly?"

Rye explained that they would need to start rehearsals right away if they wanted to have a shot at playing the Spring Festival, which was only 6 weeks away. They probably needed a couple of hours every day after school, at least at first. Katniss shook her head. "That won't work. I need that time to—" she paused for a second- "do my homework." They all knew she had nearly said, "I need that time to hunt." Granted, her hunting wasn't exactly a secret but that didn't mean it was a good idea to go blabbing about it. And while she and Gale spent Sundays hunting and trying to get stocked up for the week, they still needed at least a few weekday afternoons to supplement what they had.

"Fair enough, "said Rye. "How about evenings, maybe after supper?"

Katniss rolled her eyes. "Right. A girl from the Seam who spends her evenings hanging out with four Merchant boys. You might as well name the band 'Slag Heap.'"

"Oh, c'mon, Everdeen. Who gives a shit about that whole Merchant-Seam divide, anyway?"

"_Merchants_," spat Katniss. "Besides, you aren't the one they'll call 'Seam Slut.'"

Peeta spoke so forcefully that it stopped the entire conversation in its tracks. "Nobody will say that about you, Katniss!_Ever_!" Rye and Madge looked at each other with raised eyebrows. Peeta looked just as surprised at his outburst as the rest of them. He put the heels of his hands back over his eyes.

Katniss wouldn't look at Peeta. She played with the end of her braid and murmured, "Yes, they will, Peeta. They'll say that and worse. My own mother was Merchant and she got _disowned_ when she married my father."

Rye rolled his eyes. "Everdeen, your grandparents didn't kick your mom out because they were Merchants. They kicked her out because they were _assholes_. They still are. We should know. The apothecary isn't far from the bakery and the Mellark boys have been there plenty of times over the years." There was real bitterness in his voice. Katniss wasn't sure which thought disturbed her more—the fact that the two boys sitting across from her had met her grandparents and she never had; or that Mrs. Mellark's abuse had given her absent grandparents so much business.

She looked at the brothers. Rye had a closed expression on his face and was looking at the wall behind the girls and Peeta was looking down at his hands. He glanced up at Katniss and she could see shame in his eyes. Well, Katniss could relate to being ashamed of your own mother; she just didn't know what to say about it.

Madge finally broke the tension by asking, "What if you had rehearsals at my house? There's always somebody there and you really can't ask for a more secure chaperone than the Mayor or the Mayor's wife. Besides, if my dad approves of your group, well…people can _think_ what they want but they'll be much less inclined to _say_ it. And much more inclined to hire your band. Assuming you're any good, that is."

Rye looked impressed. "Can you really swing that?" he asked.

"Maybe", shrugged Madge. "Can't hurt to ask."

The bell rang suddenly, announcing the end of lunch. Katniss packed up her lunch, which she hadn't finished, and said to Rye, "Look. I don't know. I need to my mother's permission. And I need to think about it. Can I let you know in a day or two?" Rye nodded.

As they all started on their separate ways, Rye caught up with Katniss and said, "Wait. Katniss. There's something else." Peeta was already halfway down the hall but he frowned over his shoulder at Rye. Rye waited until Peeta had gone into his classroom before saying, "This isn't just for me. This is about Peeta, too." Katniss waited for him to explain while Rye took a breath and lowered his voice. "Look, Bannock was supposed to take over the bakery but he knocked up the carpenter's daughter. They got married and now he's apprenticed with her father. I'm next in line to inherit the bakery."

"Ok," said Katniss, still unsure where this was going. "And?"

"And," Rye continued, "I don't want the bakery. _At all_. Peeta does. And he'd be really good at it. He's happy there, at least when our mother isn't around. Everything about it that I hate, he loves."

"You could always take Bannock's route," Katniss pointed out. "Marry a merchant girl and take over her parent's trade. For that matter, so could Peeta." She found herself frowning at her own words.

Rye whispered, "I don't want to get married, ever. I don't want to take over anybody's trade. I'll never get rich playing music, not in this shithole of a District. But if I do this right, I won't starve, especially if I stay on part-time at the bakery. If Peeta has the bakery, he gets the life he wants and I get the life I want. If he doesn't get the bakery, well…he'll probably wind up in the mines."

Rye looked at his feet. "Our mother...never liked Peeta," he confessed. "Well, she never liked any of us but she's really awful to Peet. I think she wanted a girl. Instead, she wound up with a third boy who could never inherit anything. Peeta has made it clear to her that he'd never agree to an arranged Merchant marriage just to stay in town. He just isn't wired that way and she knows it. I think she always expected him to wind up in the mines. It's one of the reasons she's worse to him than she ever was to Bannock or me. In her mind, he's already Seam."

Rye looked up at her then. Even though he and Peeta physically looked a great deal alike, Rye's eyes were much harder than Peeta's. Peeta's eyes were warm and open; Rye's held anger and secrets. She was reminded of Gale. Returning to his normal voice, he said, "Listen, Everdeen, I've never even heard you sing. For all I know, you suck. But Peeta and the Mayor's daughter both say you're good and I'd like to hear you sing at least once so I know for myself. Talk to your mom. Think it over. Just-don't dismiss this out of hand because of some Merchant-Seam bullshit, ok?"

Katniss nodded. Rye let out a breath he'd been holding and walked away. Katniss stood in the nearly empty hallway for a moment before her feet took her in the right direction. She was having a difficult time sorting out her thoughts but some deep instinct told her that this decision would profoundly change her life. She just couldn't tell if it would be for better or worse.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note: all my thanks and love to amazing betas, dandelionsunset and francatwild.**

**Chapter 4—the decision**

Katniss spent the rest of the day contemplating Rye Mellark's offer. When she found Prim after school, Prim picked up on her mood right away. "What's wrong?", she asked.

"Nothing, exactly. I just have to make a decision, " Katniss said, looking at her little sister. "I'll tell you about it at supper, OK?" Prim accepted this. When they got home, Katniss changed into her hunting gear and headed for the woods. Gale was already there checking the snare lines. She didn't say anything to him as they hunted-talking scared away game-but after they'd trapped and shot enough for supper, Katniss told him about her lunchtime conversation with Rye.

Katniss fully expected resistance from Gale. He was not likely to be happy about the potential loss of his hunting partner, even if it was only occasionally, nor was he going to be thrilled about her hanging out with more Merchant kids. He already resented Madge, although he knew he shouldn't. Gale had even admitted to Katniss in the woods that he thought the Capitol wanted the Merchant-Seam class divide because it would keep them from uniting against the Capitol.

In Panem, any child of Reaping age could receive food assistance—a ration of grain and oil called tessera—once a month. The price for that assistance was an extra entry in the Reaping bowl. Katniss herself had signed up for her first tessera on her 12th birthday. Since then, she'd gone back an additional 11 times. If she didn't go back between now and the next Reaping, she'd have 17 entries in that bowl—five for every year she'd been eligible for the Reaping plus twelve extras that she'd exchanged for tesserae over the years. Gale was 18 and this was his last year of eligibility for the Hunger Games. He had two younger brothers and a younger sister, so he had more mouths to feed. She wasn't sure how many entries he would have in the Reaping Bowl this year but she knew it was a lot more than her.

Merchant kids rarely went hungry, while Seam kids frequently did. Some even died of starvation every winter. That meant that Seam kids were much more likely to take out tesserae than Merchant kids. As a result, far more kids from the Seam were sent to the Hunger Games from District 12 than kids from town. Gale knew it wasn't the fault of any kid that District 12 was like that, but he resented it anyway.

So Katniss was not surprised that Gale was against her singing with Rye's band. What _did_ surprise her was his reason why.

"He's just trying to get into your pants, Katniss! They all are!" he said, furiously. Katniss was so shocked at his outburst that she stopped walking and stared at him with her jaw dropped. Here she'd been preparing herself for a political argument and Gale had suddenly made this extremely personal. Her shock was quickly replaced by anger, though.

"Excuse me? 'Get into my pants'? You really think that?"

"I really think they'll try. I'm sure they'd all love to take advantage of some poor girl from the Seam."

"And you think I'd actually _let_ them?", she hissed. Katniss almost felt like crying, although whether it was from anger or sadness, she wasn't sure. She couldn't believe that Gale, of all people, was making this accusation.

Gale seemed to realize that maybe he'd said the wrong thing. "No, Catnip, I know you wouldn't. I shouldn't have said that."

"You certainly thought it. It was the first thing out of your mouth! What is wrong with you, Gale?"

"Oh, _come on_, Katniss. Don't be naive. Why else would some Merchant kids be interested in you? You really think it makes sense that some townie kids just all of a sudden think you can sing? I didn't even know that and I'm your best friend." Gale sounded a little hurt.

She raised an eyebrow at his tone. "Madge is a Merchant kid. You think she's trying to get into my pants, too? And for the record, Gale, I can actually sing. I just don't have reason to very often."

Katniss started walking back towards the fence. Gale caught up with her after a moment. Finally, Katniss broke the silence and she couldn't keep the anger from her voice. "Rye treated me like he would anybody else. Madge is going to ask her father if we can rehearse at the Mayor's house just so people will be less inclined to talk. And Peeta defended my honor when I said Merchant people would call me names." She glanced at Gale, who was looking mulish. "You know, I told Rye I was worried that Merchant folk would jump to the wrong conclusion. Instead, it's my best friend from the Seam doing it."

Gale's expression softened at this but he didn't say anything.

Katniss continued, "If this worked, I'd make more money just at the Spring Festival than I can trade for at the Hob in a month. And playing one toasting gig would be enough to buy a week's worth of food for Mom, Prim and myself. You know what that means for me. And for Prim. Not to mention, I can't get arrested for singing."

Gale knew what Katniss was really saying. The more money that Katniss could earn, the less likely it was that she would need to take out more tesserae. And Prim had just turned 12. This was her first year of eligibility for the Games. Katniss was determined that Prim would never, ever have to take out tesserae.

Gale didn't argue with Katniss after that but the scowl on his face made it clear he still didn't like it. They spent the rest of their walk in silence and went their separate ways when they got to the fence.

At supper that night, Katniss told her mother and Prim everything, including Rye's reasons for wanting this to succeed. The only details she left out were that the Mellark boys were frequent customers of Rosemary's parents because of Mrs. Mellark's abuse; and that Peeta received more injuries at his mother's hands than anyone else. She didn't think Prim needed to hear that.

"I think you should do it, Katniss. You have a beautiful voice. Everybody should get to hear it, " Prim gushed. Mrs. Everdeen was quiet for a minute, then told Prim to wash up and get ready for bed because she needed to talk to Katniss privately. Prim kissed them both goodnight and left them at the table.

Mrs. Everdeen looked at her daughter and asked, "Do you _want_ to do this, Katniss? We can talk all night about why you should or shouldn't but really, it just comes down to whether you want to do it or not."

Katniss shrugged. "I don't honestly know. Until today, it's something I've never even thought of doing. And Mom?" Katniss gave a sigh. "Gale said they are all just trying to 'get into my pants.'"

Mrs. Everdeen rolled her eyes and to Katniss' surprise, genuinely laughed. "Sweetie, Gale said that out of jealousy. He's not used to sharing you with anybody except Prim and Madge. He sees those boys as competition."

"Competition for what?" Katniss asked, confused.

"For your affections, obviously." Mrs. Everdeen smiled softly at her daughter.

Katniss shook her head. "No, that can't be right. There's never been anything romantic between us, Mom. Gale didn't even _like_ me the first couple of years we knew each other. He's my best friend but that's all." Even as Katniss said it, though, she wondered if friendship was really the best word for what she had with Gale. Over the last several months, they _had_ become closer, confiding in each other more and more. The woods, which already sustained them as they hunted and gathered, had become a sanctuary of sorts. They could be themselves with each other when they were out there.

But Gale had never indicated he was interested in her as a girlfriend. And Katniss knew she was never going to fall in love, anyway. Love was dangerous. She saw what it did to her mother when her father died. She already knew she would never get married and never have kids, not when they could be taken away in the Reaping. And Gale _knew_ she felt that way, so it didn't make any sense at all that he would see her as a potential girlfriend.

"Hmm. I wonder if that's all he thinks he is to you, " mused Mrs. Everdeen, interrupting Katniss' train of thought. "You're not a little girl anymore, Katniss. You're nearly 16. You're becoming a beautiful young woman and Gale is one of the only boys in this District who doesn't find you a little intimidating."

"Who finds me intimidating?" Katniss wondered.

"Anybody who's seen what you bring back from those woods," Mrs. Everdeen said with conviction. "I think on some level, Gale simply assumes the two of you will eventually wind up together. You still haven't answered my question, though, Katniss. Do you want to do this?"

Katniss struggled with her thoughts for a moment. When she was little, she had sung with her father all the time. He had taught her most of the songs he knew. She had loved to sing. But after he had died in that coal mine, she had quit. It just made her miss him even more. So she didn't do it very often, only when Prim was very sick. Well, at least she didn't do it very often on purpose. According to Madge, she hummed when they did homework, which was a little embarrassing. "Singing reminds me of Daddy", she confided.

Mrs. Everdeen placed her hands on top of Katniss' and said, "You remind me of him so much. If he were still here, would you want to do this?"

"If he were here, I wouldn't _have_ to do this," Katniss snapped, a little too harshly. She saw the hurt look on her mother's face and regretted her outburst immediately.

Mrs. Everdeen pulled her hand back and said, not unkindly, "You don't _have_ to do this now, Katniss. That's why I've been asking you if this is what you _want_ to do. I know what you've had to do for these last few years, and I know it was my fault." Katniss didn't argue. She still hadn't really forgiven her mother for allowing them to nearly starve. "But you make this decision for you, not for me or Prim. So I'll ask you again-if your father were still here, would you do this?"

Katniss knew what her mother was really asking. If Mr. Everdeen were still here to support them and Katniss didn't have to spend all of her spare time trying to put food on the table, would she do this just because she wanted to? Their house had been full of music when her father was alive. He always beamed at her when she sang. She knew what his answer would be if he were here.

And then there was Peeta. She owed him for the bread, for saving her life. Katniss hated owing people. She thought of the baker boy working in the mines, his brightness covered in coal dust. Coal miners in District 12 didn't have a very long life expectancy. The coal mine explosion that took her father's life took the life of Gale's father, too. Neither man had lived to see the age of 40. Joining forces with Rye might not save Peeta's life directly, but it could give him a shot at the life he deserved. It would also pay her debt to him.

"Yes," she told her mother, quietly. " I think I will do this."

Mrs. Everdeen smiled. "Then you do it. But you will need somebody at to walk you home at night, Katniss, if it's after dark."

Katniss frowned at this. Person-on-person crime was rare in District 12 and the Peacekeepers were really only there to prevent crimes against the Capitol. "Mom, you _just said_ people find me intimidating. Why on earth would I need to be walked home after dark?"

"Because," said Mrs. Everdeen, sounding much firmer than Katniss was used to hearing, "it's only proper, Katniss. It doesn't look right for a young woman to be by herself that late at night. Besides, you know you can't carry a weapon inside the fence." Katniss' heart sank a little at this because the only person she could really ask to escort her home every night was Gale. She doubted he'd be willing.

They started to get up from the table but Katniss stopped her mother and said, "Mom? Can I tell you something else?" She told her mother what Rye had said about Peeta-that Mrs. Mellark singled him out for her wrath, that he was abused more than his brothers. And that the abuse frequently sent them to Mrs. Everdeen's parents at the apothecary.

Mrs. Everdeen shook her head and pulled Katniss into an unexpected hug. "Katniss, Marigold Mellark is…"

"A complete witch?" Katniss finished for her. She decided to return her mother's hug. Whatever her faults, her mother had never laid a hand on either of her girls.

Mrs. Everdeen sighed, "Everybody knows it's bad for those boys, but I'm sorry to hear it's worse for Peeta. He looks the most like his father, which is probably another reason she takes out more on him than on his brothers."

Katniss couldn't see why that should make any difference but didn't say so. Her mother said, "Farl-Peeta's father-he should have put a stop to her behavior years ago. He's a kind man and very giving but…not very courageous."

_Peeta is_, thought Katniss. At the age of 11, Peeta had been willing to sacrifice his own physical safety for a girl he had never spoken to. Yet his own father wasn't even willing to intervene as his wife beat the hell out of his sons.

"Rye Mellark doesn't much like your parents. He called them assholes," she said to her mother. Katniss expected her mother to scold her about her language.

Instead, Rosemary raised an eyebrow, her eyes full of amusement. "Yes, well, Rye sounds like a smart boy." For just a moment, Rosemary sounded so much like her old self that Katniss let out a laugh. She'd kept her mother at arm's length for years, now. Maybe it all right to let herself be mothered again, just a little bit, every now and then.

Katniss said good night to her mother and got ready for bed. Prim was waiting up for her. "Are you going to do it?" Prim asked. Katniss nodded. Prim's radiant smile went a long way towards quieting Katniss' doubts. "You'll be wonderful, Katniss. Just you wait. Everybody is going to want to hear you sing."

Katniss thought about the horrible things Mrs. Mellark said about people from the Seam. _Not everybody_, she smiled to herself.


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you so much to my fantastic betas, dandelionsunset and francatwild. (If there are still typos, it's probably because I put them back in.)**

**Chapter 5—the benefit of the doubt**

"I can't believe she's letting you do this." Gale and Katniss were walking to school. Prim was walking ahead of them with Gale's little brothers, Rory and Vick. Katniss had just told Gale that her mother had given Katniss permission last night to join Rye's band. Gale's opinion on the matter had not improved.

Katniss sighed. "Well, she is, but there's a condition attached. My mother doesn't want me walking home alone at night from the Undersee's. I know it's a lot to ask but I was hoping you'd be willing to do it."

Gale snorted, "Are you serious?" He scowled and looked like he was about to start another argument. _Great_, she thought, _now he's all mad again_. She backpedaled.

"Look, forget it. This is my mother's requirement, not mine. I'll try to get her to let me walk alone. And if she isn't OK with that, I can ask Rye or one of the other guys in the band."

"No, don't do that," Gale said quickly. "I'll do it. Wouldn't want some townie boy dragging you off to the Slag Heap."

Katniss tried to hide it but she was hurt—really hurt—but Gale's words. She was nearly 16 years old and had never even been kissed. She had certainly never been to the Slag Heap, the District's default make-out spot. Still, he was doing her a favor, so she tried to be gracious. "Thank you, Gale. I'll talk to Madge at lunch today. Assuming her dad gives us permission, come pick me up around 9:00. If he hasn't, I'll get word to you."

She thought about what her mother had said last night, about Gale being jealous. She didn't really want to believe it. She tried to see things from his point of view. She thought about how she'd feel if Gale were suddenly spending his evenings with four Merchant girls. She supposed she might be a little jealous but she sure wouldn't be trying to talk him out of it, especially if it would put food on his table.

They spent the rest of the walk in an uncomfortable silence. When they got to school, Katniss asked, "Are we heading out after school?" He knew she was asking if they were hunting today.

Gale huffed, "No." Then he looked over Katniss' shoulder and she saw his face cloud over. She turned around. Rye and Peeta were just walking up and said hello to both of them. Katniss returned the greeting. Gale said nothing. He scowled at the brothers, the silence going on long enough to be uncomfortable. Katniss elbowed Gale. He glared at her for a second, then stomped off. Katniss tried to keep the hurt off of her face when she turned to face Rye and Peeta.

Both brothers watched him leave but while Rye looked amused, Peeta looked worried.

Katniss tried to shake off Gale's bad mood and said, "OK, I'm in. When do we start?"

Rye watched Gale's retreating form. "I take it your boyfriend isn't very happy with your decision?"

Katniss frowned. "Gale isn't my boyfriend."

Peeta looked at Katniss, the worried look on his face suddenly gone. "Is he your cousin or something? You look a lot alike."

Katniss shook her head. "No, we aren't related. A lot of people in the Seam look like us. And we're just friends."

Rye and Peeta glanced at each other before Rye said, "Uh huh. Well, you might want to inform him of that because 'just friends' don't act like that. Jealous boyfriends do."

"He thinks you all are trying to get into my pants. That's a direct quote," she sighed, turning a little red. Peeta looked angry but it was Rye who spoke first.

"None of us has a death wish, Everdeen. And I mean that sincerely. We all know you could kill us and sell us for meat at the Hob. I'll find you and Madge at lunch and see whether Mayor Undersee is willing to let us turn his house into a rehearsal hall. Later, Everdeen." Rye walked to class but Katniss was a little surprised that Peeta didn't join him.

"Did he really say that to you, Katniss?" Peeta frowned.

"Who, Gale?" Peeta nodded. "Yes, he really did. Why do you ask?" Katniss didn't understand why Peeta would care.

Peeta looked at her, his face filled with concern. "Because this might be Rye's band but you're the one taking the biggest risk by being in it. I'm not blind to what goes on in this District, Katniss. I know Merchant kids get the benefit of the doubt when Seam kids don't. But whether Gale's your friend or your boyfriend, it's clear that you two are close. I would have hoped he'd give you the benefit of the doubt, too."

They had started walking towards class without Katniss even being aware of it. Katniss _had_ been hurt by Gale's reaction, but she couldn't have put into words precisely why it bothered her so much. Somehow, Peeta had articulated exactly what she had been feeling.

But she didn't know how to say any of that, either, so she just nodded her head a little and hoped that sufficed for an answer. She decided to change the subject. "Are you joining us with Rye again today at lunch? You seemed to enjoy it so much yesterday." She couldn't help but grin as she remembered how Rye had teased Peeta.

Peeta groaned and wiped one hand over his face, which had started to turn a little pink. "Yeah, well, Rye has a lot of experience getting under my skin. I can get under his, too, though, so it evens out." Then his face fell a bit. "I can't today. My friend Will and I are helping Coach with some of the freshman wrestlers over our lunch period." He did look genuinely disappointed.

"That's right, you're on the wrestling team. Do you help the coach a lot?" Katniss asked.

"You knew I wrestled?" Peeta looked at Katniss in mild shock.

"Is it supposed to be a secret?" She scowled a little. Did he think she was stupid or something?

Peeta laughed and said "No, of course not. It just makes me happy that anybody would notice, is all. And to answer your question, Coach has everybody on the wrestling team take turns training the freshmen."

Peeta was smiling and he sure looked happy. Katniss supposed he probably didn't get much positive feedback at home. She thought about the look in his eyes when the subject of his mother's abuse came up yesterday at lunch.

Then she remembered something else from yesterday. "Wait. Peeta, I just thought of something. Rye said you told him I could sing. How did you know that?"

Just then the bell rang. Peeta looked a little panicked and said, "Story for another time. See you later?" Then he practically sprinted down the hall. Katniss looked at the clock and panicked a little, herself. She ran down the hall and got into her desk just in time.


	7. Chapter 7

**As always, thanks a million to my betas, dandelionsunset and francatwild! **

**Chapter 6—girl's night in**

Rye joined them at lunch. Madge said her father was fine with them rehearsing at their home it as long as they didn't make a mess, cleaned up after themselves and kept it in the basement so it wouldn't bother her mother. Rye suggested they begin rehearsals tomorrow night.

Rye gave Katniss an intimidatingly large song list. Many of them she already knew but plenty were unfamiliar. Madge looked at it and said, "I think we have some recordings of these at my house. Katniss, why don't you come over tonight? You can listen to the songs you don't know to get ready for rehearsals with the whole band. Plus, you can see if there's anything else you'd like to sing. And bring Prim, if your mother thinks its alright."

When they got home after school, Katniss let her mother know that Gale had agreed to walk her home. Mrs. Everdeen seemed satisfied and also gave Prim permission to go to Madge's house that night.

After supper, Katniss and Prim walked to the Undersee's. Prim was thrilled at the prospect of getting to spend the evening with Madge, whom she adored. Madge met them at the back door and brought them into her basement. Katniss had never seen this part of Madge's house before. She was expecting something like a coal cellar but it turned out to be a very comfortable room. There was an upright piano against the wall. The furniture was clean but older and well-worn, almost shabby looking. None of it matched. There were several lamps, a wall of books, a beat up stereo system and a fireplace at the far end of the room. Everything about the room was cozy and inviting.

It was also well-lit, which was unusual in and of itself for most buildings in the District. However, being part of the local government meant that the Undersee home was one of the few places that consistently had electricity. It was on a separate grid along with the Justice Building and a couple of other municipal structures.

The girls settled in with Rye's song list. They went through the songs Katniss didn't know. If there wasn't a recording of it, Madge played it on the piano and taught Katniss the lyrics until Katniss had it mostly memorized. Prim listened to other tracks through headphones and wrote down suggestions for their song list.

Katniss was seriously impressed both with Madge's ability to play the piano and with her knowledge of music. She showed Katniss a large chest filled with sheet music, some of it from before the Dark Days. Katniss suggested that they petition Rye to have Madge join the band but Madge said that bluegrass music didn't usually have a piano and anyway, pianos weren't easy to carry from gig to gig.

After about an hour, Madge brought down tea and cookies and they took a break. Most of the cookies were plain sugar cookies but one was iced with yellow primroses. Madge handed it to Prim and said, "This is for you."

Prim's eyes lit up when she saw it. "Madge!" she said breathlessly, "Where did you get this?"

Madge laughed. "At the bakery, of course. I told Rye and Peeta as they were leaving school that I would be getting cookies for the three of us tonight. Peeta iced that one just for you." Prim made the same noise she used for puppies and kittens. Katniss started to scowl-just one more thing she would owe Peeta Mellark-but Prim was so happy that Katniss found herself smiling despite herself. Maybe she'd include an extra squirrel for Mr. Mellark on Saturday or something.

Just before the end of the evening, Madge played the piano for them. The songs she played were unlike anything Katniss had ever heard. Madge said they were called "sonatas." Katniss and Prim sat on the floor and applauded when she was done. All in all, it was one of the nicest evenings Katniss had had in years.

So naturally, Gale had to come along and ruin it.

When he arrived at the backdoor, Madge invited him in to wait while the Everdeen girls put their shoes and sweaters back on. Gale coldly refused.

Then Madge offered him one of the sugar cookies. Gale sneered, "I don't need your handouts, Undersee."

Madge looked confused. "I know you don't, Gale. I'm just offering a cookie to my guest, is all."

"I'm not your guest," he condescended. Apparently, he hadn't had his fill be being rude because he added, completely unnecessarily, "Must be nice to have electricity full time."

Madge had done an admirable job of keeping her face neutral up to this point but his words seemed to stir something within her. She narrowed her eyes at him and enunciated her words very carefully. "Local government has to be available to the Capitol 24/7."

Gale looked down at Madge and sneered, "Well, I'm sure being at the beck and call of the Capitol is quite the burden."

Katniss and Prim had finished putting on their shoes and outerwear by this time and were both glaring at Gale. Madge turned a bit pink but when she spoke, she looked Gale in the eyes and her voice was steady. "You don't have the first clue what you are talking about, Gale."

Gale opened his mouth to say something but Katniss grabbed one arm and Prim grabbed the other. They both thanked Madge quickly and dragged Gale towards home.

Prim started in on Gale first. "Gale Hawthorne! What is the matter with you? Madge has never been anything but nice to Katniss and me. Why did you have to be so rude?"

Gale scoffed, "Oh, please. She's living in luxury while people in the Seam are staving to death. She can handle a little rudeness."

Now it was Katniss' turn. "It isn't Madge's fault that people in the Seam go hungry, Gale, and you know it. She can't help where she lives any more than you can. She's 16 years old. She lives with her parents just like the rest of us. Besides, _we trade with her and her father_! Who else can afford your strawberries?"

Gale wasn't having any of it. "Whatever. Did you hear her, treating me like a charity case with those stupid cookies? She's a townie snob."

Now both girls started to argue with him. They bickered with Gale until they arrived at the Everdeen home. Prim announced, "Gale, the only person who was being a snob tonight was you. You want to pretend that Madge looks down on you because you're from the Seam but the truth is you look down on Madge because she's from town. You act like you are too good for her but you're not. You're just _jealous_." And with that, she flounced into the house, blond braids swinging.

Gale started to argue but Katniss held up a hand and said, "Save it. Look, Gale, you're my best friend. We've known each other for a long time and you've never acted like this. Ever. But that right there-" Katniss pointed at the door that Prim had disappeared through-"is the third time in the last day that somebody has pointed out to me that you're acting jealous. I don't know what your problem is or why you're acting like this but you had no reason-_none_-to treat Madge like you did. So thanks for walking us back home tonight but from now on, I'll find somebody else to do it or I'll go it alone."

"Wait. Catnip-" he started but Katniss walked into the house and slammed the door behind her.


	8. Chapter 8

**Thank you everybody for the faves, the follows and the reviews. You have all been incredibly supportive and it means a LOT.**

**To answer a couple of private messages I received: Yes, there is a specific endgame that I have in mind, but telling you would ruin the surprise. I will just repeat what I said in my summary—this is canon-divergent. **

**BETA THANKS: I give my love, gratitude and an extra helping of Peeta's buns (geddit?) to my betas, Chelziebelle and dandelionsunset. These amazing women have taken a significant amount of time from their very busy lives to help a complete stranger. Their feedback—especially on the upcoming four chapters—has been invaluable. Any mistakes, typos or issues with consistency are my fault, not theirs.**

**A/N: This is the first of a four chapter series where the reader sees the same day from four different POVs. **

**Chapter 7—the solution (Katniss' Friday)**

The following morning, Katniss told her mother what had happened with Gale. Mrs. Everdeen was sympathetic, but still required that somebody walk Katniss home from the Undersee's after dark. Katniss was not surprised but it meant she was going to have to find a solution before the end of the day.

Prim had plenty to say on the issue as the sisters walked to school. "Gale is being _so stupid_! Who insults the daughter of his best customer? And does he actually think he's the only boy in the District capable of walking you home?"

Katniss shrugged at this. "I don't know, Prim. Who else would want to walk me all the way back to the Seam every night?"

Prim gave her sister a long look before exclaiming, "Katniss? You may be the least observant hunter who ever lived." Katniss was unsure what her sister was referring to but didn't want to admit that. So she just didn't say anything. The girls parted ways when they arrived on campus.

Katniss saw Rye and Peeta walking into school together and jogged up to them. "Hey, Everdeen!" said Rye. "We still on for tonight?"

"I hope so. I've run into a problem." Katniss explained about her mother's requirement that she have an escort home.

"Okaaaaaay, " said Rye. "Just have your boyfriend come get you."

"I don't _have_ a boyfriend," Katniss huffed.

"Oh, right. Well, ask Hawthorne, then. He _thinks_ he's your boyfriend, I'm sure he'd be happy to do it." Rye grinned and glanced at Peeta out of the corner of his eye. Peeta crossed his arms over his chest and frowned.

Katniss looked disgruntled. "I did ask him, actually, but he was so rude to Madge last night that I told him I'd find somebody else or walk home alone. My mother won't let me go alone, though, so I'm kinda stuck until I can-"

"I'll walk you home!" exclaimed Peeta. Much like he had at lunch a couple of days earlier, Peeta looked totally surprised by his own outburst.

"Right on, Peet, thanks," chuckled Rye, slapping his brother once on the back. "Problem solved!" Then he walked off, leaving Katniss and Peeta on their own.

Katniss looked at Peeta for a second and said, "Um, thanks, Peeta. Look, you don't have to do this, you're not even in the band. I don't want to put you out or anything."

"It's not a problem at all. You won't be putting me out. If anything, you're kind of doing me a favor because it'll get me out of the house."

_If I lived with that witch, I'd been looking for reasons to get out of the house, too_, Katniss thought to herself, but she didn't say that. Instead, she said, "Oh! And Prim says thank you for the cookie last night. She was so excited about it."

Peeta smiled and blushed. Katniss found herself smiling back. They started walking into school together. "I was happy to do it. I've seen you walk Prim by the window when we have our cakes displayed. I was working on a couple of the cakes yesterday. When Madge said she was getting cookies for you all, I thought Prim would like her own decorated cookie."

"She loved it. Wait, does this mean _you_ decorate the cakes?"

"Yeah," Peeta said. "Most of them anyway." Katniss looked at him. She thought again about what Rye told her. _I don't want the bakery. At all. Peeta does. And he'd be really good at it. He's happy there. Everything about it that I hate, he loves_.

Looking at the expression on Peeta's face, Katniss thought she could see a little of what Rye meant. Peeta wasn't acting boastful but she could see that he took great pride in his work.

"The cakes are amazing, Peeta. I had no idea it was you. I'll be sure to tell Prim." Peeta looked _absurdly_ happy at her praise. Not for the first time, it occurred to Katniss that Peeta likely didn't get much positive feedback at home. That would explain why he was grinning at her like he'd won a prize or something.

They were standing outside her classroom. "See you tonight?"

"Yeah," Peeta nodded. "It's a date."

Katniss gave a little wave and walked into her classroom. It wasn't until the teacher started the lecture that she realized she was still wearing a big stupid smile of her own. She schooled her face back into a neutral expression and focused on class.

Later, Katniss found Madge at lunch and immediately started apologizing for Gale. Madge waved her off. "_You_ don't owe me any apologies, Katniss. Besides, I've thought about it, and when Gale comes back tonight, I'd like to talk to him for a few minutes before you guys leave. I have a few things I need to say to him."

Katniss grinned. Most of the other girls in their age were drooling after Gale but Madge was planning to tell him off. Katniss felt her already high opinion of Madge tick upwards even more. "Um, I'd love to see that, actually, but after last night I took him off bodyguard duty."

Madge raised an eyebrow at this. "Oh, really? I'm almost sorry to hear it. I had such a good speech worked out. And what will Mr. Hawthorne have to do to get back into your good graces?"

"Apologize to you, obviously," said Katniss. "That, and he needs to stop acting like the only sandbox I'm allowed to play in is the Seam."

Madge raised an eyebrow. "I doubt it's just geography that's bothering him. Anyway, how are you getting home tonight?"

"Peeta, um, offered to walk me home."

Madge digested this news with a little smile. Finally she said, "Well. That was very nice of him to offer."

Katniss wasn't sure what to say, so she didn't say anything. The girls spent the rest of lunch in companionable silence.

After school got out, Katniss and Madge left the building together. Suddenly, Madge said in a bored sounding voice, "Oh, look, there's Gale Hawthorne. See you tonight, Katniss!" Katniss' jaw dropped as she watched Madge run towards Gale, who was clearly heading home with his younger brothers. Madge stopped right in front of Gale so he'd have to go around her and started talking. Katniss couldn't hear what she was saying and she didn't want to look like she was eavesdropping. Besides, she needed to get Prim.

She found Prim and they took an alternate path home. The direct route was shorter but it would have taken them right by Madge and the Hawthorne boys. Katniss made sure she did not look in their direction. Prim, however, openly stared over her shoulder as they walked and gave Katniss mini-reports. "Gale's unhappy but his brothers look pretty amused." "I think he just told Rory to take Vick home." "Now they're arguing." Then they turned a corner and couldn't see Madge and Gale anymore.

When they got home, Katniss told her mother that Peeta Mellark was bringing her back from Madge's that night. Her mother's reaction surprised her. Katniss expected her mother's usual, distracted nod that indicated she'd heard what you'd just said but didn't have any strong opinions about it.

What she got instead was her mother's full attention. "Peeta Mellark is walking you home tonight? Really?"

Katniss looked at her mother and was surprised to see that her mother's face was full of concern. "Yes, really. He offered this morning while I was talking to Rye."

"I can't imagine his mother will be very happy about that," Mrs. Everdeen said quietly. Katniss frowned. She hadn't thought about that. Mrs. Mellark hated the Seam and everyone in it. Was Peeta going to get in trouble—or worse—because she needed to be walked home like some little kid?

"Do you think I should tell him no? He's already planning to be there tonight," said Katniss. She felt a pang of disappointment at this thought. She was sort of looking forward to walking with Peeta tonight. But she didn't want to be the source of yet another injury on Peeta's body at the hands of Witch Mellark.

Mrs. Everdeen thought for a moment and said, "Well, it's probably too late to stop him from coming tonight but let him know that you can make other arrangements if needed. Maybe you should go speak with Gale. I bet he'd apologize to you if he heard that Peeta Mellark—or anybody else, for that matter—was walking you home."

But Katniss had started shaking her head before her mother had even finished speaking. "No. Gale doesn't need to apologize to me. He needs to apologize to Madge."

Prim piped up, "he needs to apologize to both of you."

Katniss didn't hunt that afternoon. They were doing all right on food for another day, she had some homework that she needed to complete and she really didn't want to run into Gale. So she was floored when she heard knocking at the front door and looked through the window to see standing on their porch.

Katniss hesitated for a moment before opening the door. She raised her eyebrows at him but didn't say anything.

"Hey, Catnip. Can I talk to you for a minute?"

Katniss nodded and stepped outside. They sat next to each other on the porch steps.

Gale looked at his hands as he rubbed them together. He took a deep breath and "I understand why you're doing this. I've always understood. I didn't like it—I still don't—but do understand it. I owe you an apology."

Katniss' face was carefully neutral. "Why don't you like it?"

Gale sighed. "You were right, Catnip. Prim was right. I am jealous. I'm not used to the idea of sharing you with other people. With other _guys_."

Katniss frowned. This was not a conversation she was prepared to have. "Gale, are you...do you have..._feelings_ for me?" Katniss hated that she was stammering but the topic was making her uncomfortable.

"I sure thought we were headed in that direction. Well, I thought _I_ was and I assumed you were, too. You weren't, though, were you." It was a statement, not a question.

"No. I wasn't." Katniss watched his face. He looked resigned. This was the answer he expected. He was quiet for a while. Katniss sat next to him trying to find a way to make him feel better without leading him on. Nothing came to mind so she stayed quiet.

"Well, I may need a little time to readjust my worldview of Katniss Everdeen but I promise I'm done being a jerk to you."

"What about Madge? Are you done being a jerk to her, too?"

Gale let out a burst of laughter. "Oh. Well, I guess you saw that. Madge Undersee chewed my ass out after school today. Seriously, she could give my mother lessons in ass-chewing. It was like being taken to the woodshed."

"Then…why are you smiling so much?" asked Katniss, with an eyebrow raised.

"I guess my ass needed chewing."

Katniss nodded but looked pensive. His next question didn't surprise her.

"Do you need me to walk you home?"

"No. Peeta Mellark offered." She watched his face carefully. He didn't like it, that much was obvious. But the anger she'd expected was not there.

"Well...I suppose there are worse bodyguards you could have."

Katniss visibly relaxed. She understood what he was really saying. He had accepted how she felt about him.

"You think Madge would mind if I stopped by tonight during rehearsal? I gave her a really fake apology before she chewed me out. I should give her an apology I actually mean."

Katniss pondered this for a moment. "I don't think she'd mind but it's not my house. We are staying late tonight, since there isn't school tomorrow."

Gale shuffled his feet for a second. "You going hunting tomorrow morning?"

"I'd planned to, yeah."

"Are we still hunting partners?"

"Of course, we're still hunting partners." Katniss was surprised he would even ask. Gale threw one arm over her shoulder and pulled her close.

"Thank god. I don't want to go back to those woods without my backup. You're still the best hunter I've ever known. And you're the best friend I've ever had." His tone was light Katniss could hear something more serious behind it.

"Me, too."

Gale squeezed her tight for just a second and then stood up to leave. "Tell Madge I'm going to stop by around 8:00. And Catnip? Be nice to Peeta. You scare the shit out of him."


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 8—presumption (Gale's Friday)**

Gale spent most of the day in a bad mood. He had been irritated—mad, even—with Katniss before. She was a scrawny twelve-year-old when he first met her, checking out his snare lines in the woods. He thought her name was "Catnip" at first. The nickname stuck. Gale showed her how to set snares and traps. Katniss gave him one of her father's bows. They traded their knowledge and secrets about the woods.

But he still didn't like her much. Not at first. She was touchy, defensive and stubborn. Plus, she looked like a half-feral cat. Still, he couldn't deny that she was an incredible hunter. She never missed her target and she was deadly quiet. He never heard her footsteps, in the woods or out.

Even after they became friends and she didn't annoy him anymore, Gale still thought of Katniss like a sister. She was just an underweight little girl who was never getting married and never having kids. She'd first made this pronouncement when she was 13, right before her second Reaping. "Catnip, with your looks, I don't think marriage will _ever_ be a problem for you," he'd teased. She wasn't the least bit insulted. If anything, she took pride in being a scrawny tomboy. For the next couple of years, nothing changed. They bickered, they got on each other's nerves but they were a team. They trusted each other.

But then last summer happened. Katniss had turned 15 in May. There was an abundance of game that year, and good weather meant lots of berries and greens to gather. Maybe it was the extra food but whatever the reason, Katniss had a growth spurt that captivated Gale. He'd spent as much time cataloging the changes in her appearance as he did looking for game trails. He found himself bickering with her less and talking with her more. And looking at her more. And thinking about her more.

By the end of the summer, Katniss was flat-out gorgeous and Gale had formulated a plan. She didn't want to get married or have kids? Good. Neither did he, at least not for a long time. But he DID want to leave District 12. Gale had heard rumblings from some of the coal miners that there was a resistance out there, biding its time. The only way to find out, though, was to escape.

He had one Reaping left. Katniss had three. Once they had their Reapings safely behind them, he would convince Katniss to run away with him. If they found the resistance, they would fight the Capitol. If they didn't, well, they would still have each other. Either way, she would be his. She _was_ his.

Gale wasn't stupid. He and Katniss had witnessed firsthand what the Capitol did to people who tried to escape. A young couple from the Capitol had tried to escape through the woods last fall. A Capitol hovercraft appeared out of nowhere, capturing the girl and killing the boy.

But those kids were Capitol. He and Katniss were Seam. They were hunters and could live off the land if they had to. All he needed to do was bide his time.

Gale felt very secure in his plans. So secure, in fact, that he hadn't discussed them with Katniss. For starters, their siblings were too young to lose the support he and Katniss provided. They needed a few more years to make their families self-sufficient.

Mostly, though, it never occurred to Gale that Katniss could ever be interested in anybody except him. Katniss had no other friends, except for the Mayor's daughter. Not one guy had ever had the courage to talk to her, not that any of them had even noticed her until this past year. Well, he'd seen the youngest Mellark kid moon after her for years, even when she still looked like a half-starved savage. It was almost amusing—Katniss would trade squirrels with the baker and this kid would be trying _so hard_ to act like he wasn't staring at Katniss. It didn't matter, though; she'd never noticed him.

Now Rye Mellark was coming along and putting all of Gale's plans at risk. This band would keep Katniss away from the woods, away from _Gale_. Worse, she'd be spending time with four guys, all in Gale's year. Cartwright was a twit and a cream-puff; Gale wasn't worried about him. Marsh and Mandor weren't bad guys but they didn't strike Gale as being anything special, either.

Rye, well...Rye worried Gale. Rye was one of the only Merchant kids who actively argued against the Merchant-Seam divide. He was also one of the few boys in the District who could probably hold his own against Gale in a fight. (Rye's kid brother—the one too chicken-shit to talk to Katniss—was one of the others. He'd seen them both wrestle. They were good.)

Gale wasn't sure he liked Rye but had some respect for the guy. Now Katniss was going to be spending a lot of time with him. The thought kept Gale sullen the entire day.

When school got out, Gale collected Rory and Vick and started for home. He was minding his own business when Madge Undersee suddenly appeared. She stood in front of him like she could block his way. She couldn't, of course; he could just walk around her. He was about to do just that when she said, "We need to talk, Gale Hawthorne."

Her voice didn't sound like the mousy girl he was used to. There was a very determined look on her face. Still, as curious as he was about this assertive side of Madge that he'd never seen before, he wasn't about to be bossed around by her. "I don't think we do," he sneered and he started to walk away.

She grabbed his arm and said, "Fine. I'll talk and you'll listen. And when I'm done, you can apologize."

Gale rolled his eyes and said in the most insincere voice he could muster up, "I'm sorry I was rude to you the other night. I should not have said those things. Please forgive me. Good bye."

"That," said Madge, "is the most pathetic thing I've ever heard from a grown man. Now shut your mouth, Gale Hawthorne. I'm going to have my say."

Gale didn't really want to hear what she had to say but if he let Madge give her little townie speech, he could tell Katniss he'd apologized to her little townie friend. He crossed his arms over his chest and made a point of not looking at Madge.

"First things first, Gale. If you ever want to be friends with Katniss again, you are going to have to get over your ridiculous hangups about people from the Merchant class." Gale started to protest but she continued as if he hadn't spoken at all. "Katniss has spent most of this week surrounded by Merchant folk. They've _all_ accepted her with open arms. The _only_ person who keeps telling her she can't be with Merchant kids because she's from the Seam has been you."

Gale ground his teeth but didn't say anything.

"OK, moving along. Katniss isn't cheating on you, so stop acting like she is. You've known her for, what, four years? In all that time, you've never treated her like anything but a kid sister. You don't have any right to be angry that other guys have noticed her. You had your chance and you didn't take it."

Rory and Vick started chortling at this. Crap. He'd forgotten they were there. "Rory! Take Vick home and keep your mouth shut about this to mom." They didn't move, so he pointed in the direction of their house. "Go. Now." Rory and Vick left with giant, shit-eating grins on their faces. Off in the distance, he could see Katniss and Prim taking the long way home. Katniss wasn't looking at him but Prim was. Wonderful.

Gale turned back to Madge. He still wouldn't look at her but his jaw was beginning to twitch. He kept telling his feet to walk away but it was like he was frozen in place. Madge was Katniss' other best friend, and so far, her words were confirming all of Gale's deepest fears. He wanted her to stop talking but she wasn't finished.

"And for god's sake, stop telling her that the only reason those boys want her in the band is so she'll part her legs for them. Most people in this District don't see her as a sex object, they see her as a _hunter_. Once they hear her sing, they're going to think of her as a singer. More than that, Gale, they are going to _love_ her. She's that good."

Gale looked at her skeptically, which caused Madge to give out a short burst of laughter. She looked at him with a combination of amusement and frustration. Gale realized for the first time that her eyes were brown. It was such a contrast, dark eyes with her blond hair.

"Look, I don't really think she'd let one of those boys do anything-"

"Yes, you do," Madge interrupted.

"No, I don't!" Gale protested.

"Yes. You. Do. Let's be honest, Gale. You _do_ think she'd let some boy charm his way into her life—and her pants—or you wouldn't keep bringing it up. You're not upset that Katniss is hanging out with Merchant kids. You're upset she's hanging out with _boys_. Tell me—if this band was from the Seam, would you somehow be less upset?"

_No_, he thought but he just glowered at Madge. It seemed like a much better answer than admitting she was right.

"If nothing else, Gale, Katniss joining this band could be what prevents Prim from ever having to take out tesserae. Katniss has three Reapings left. After that, she won't qualify for tesserae anymore but Prim will have three more Reapings to go. How many tesserae did Katniss take out in her first three years? Twelve? Thirteen?"

Gale nodded, "more, I think. I've taken out over 35. Not that you would know anything about that. You've never even gone hungry." His tone was getting angry again.

Madge sighed. "Gale, if it were up to me, nobody would need to take out tesserae. Ever. But it's not up to me, so I'm going to support my friend while she tries to find a way to keep her family fed. I'll leave it up to you to decide why her other best friend-the one who _does_ know what it is like to go hungry-cares more about his own hurt feelings than he does about her odds in that Reaping Bowl."

Gale stared at his feet. It was like Madge had pricked a hole in his pride and all of the anger was slowly leaking out. He felt ashamed of himself. Madge gently put her hand on his arm and said, "before I go, Gale, one last thing." He looked down at her hand and then into her eyes. Her brown eyes were fierce, intense. She leaned in close to him. His gray eyes were drawn to her mouth as she parted her pink lips. She stood on her toes and whispered right into his ear so nobody could possibly hear:

"You have no idea what it is like living under the thumb of Capitol surveillance 24 hours a day. Most of my home isn't safe for that kind of discussion. Don't discuss the Capitol again on my back porch, OK? If you ever _do_ want to talk about it, I know where we can speak freely in this District and where we can't. Got it?" She tossed her hair and walked away.

Gale felt his heart pounding. _She knows where the surveillance is_. He'd have bet a summer's supply of strawberries that Madge wasn't supposed to have that kind of information. And she'd practically invited him to ask her about it.

He wondered how he had never noticed that Madge wore old faded dresses to school, just like Seam girls. Her shoes were nothing special. She didn't ever wear jewelry. You'd never know she was the wealthiest kid in the District.

Gale realized he'd been standing in the same spot, staring into space, for several minutes. Shaking the thoughts of blond hair and brown eyes out of his head, he headed back towards the Seam. He needed to make things right with Katniss.

Madge was right. Gale had never told Katniss that he felt differently about her. They'd been talking more but he'd never told her that he was attracted to her. He didn't think he'd ever have to. And he'd assumed she was attracted to him, too. What if she wasn't?

Gale let that thought roll around his head for a bit. What if Katniss would only ever see him as a friend? Did that change how he felt about her? Well...yeah. It did. The idea that she wouldn't want him didn't make him angry, exactly, but he sure wouldn't want to run away with her, either. Cold nights on the run with a girl who was "just friends" would be worse than going alone. His plans for the future, for escaping District 12 and finding the resistance, looked very different without her in them.

He got to the Everdeen's house and knocked on the door. He apologized. He asked her—in his own way—if she had romantic feelings for him. She said no. It didn't break his heart but it didn't feel great, either.

She told him that Peeta Mellark was walking her home. Well, hell. He'd been worried about Rye. Instead, Peeta "please-don't-catch-me-staring" Mellark was going to be walking home the girl he'd been pining after for years. Gale wasn't thrilled, but at least Peeta seemed to like her for who she was and not just because she'd gotten hot.

"Well...I suppose there are worse bodyguards you could have." The relief and gratitude on Katniss' face at this statement was so obvious that Gale felt a rush of affection for her. _I still matter to her_, he thought. _Maybe that's enough_.

After discussing whether he should go to Madge's house that night, Gale knew he needed to clear the air on one more thing. "You going hunting tomorrow morning?"

"I'd planned to, yeah."

"Are we still hunting partners?" The woods wouldn't be the same without her. _I've missed her these last couple of days_, he realized. _I've missed my friend_.

"Of course, we're still hunting partners." She seemed surprised by the question.

Gale gave her a one-armed hug. "Thank god. I don't want to go back to those woods without my backup. You're still the best hunter I've ever known. And you're the best friend I've ever had." There. _He'd_ friend-zoned _her_. She probably didn't notice that he'd done that but it made Gale feel better.

"Me, too." Nope. She hadn't noticed. Ah, well.

Gale stood up to leave. "Tell Madge I'm going to stop by around 8:00. And Catnip? Be nice to Peeta. You scare the shit out of him."


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Many thanks, as always, to dandelionsunset for being such a fantastic beta. **

**Chapter 9—still waters (Madge's Friday)**

"You have no idea what it is like living under the thumb of Capitol surveillance 24 hours a day. Most of my home isn't safe for that kind of discussion. Don't discuss the Capitol again on my back porch, OK? If you ever do want to talk about the Capitol, though, I know where we can speak freely in this District and where we can't. Got it?"

And then she'd just walked away from Gale and headed home. She replayed their talk—well, her lecture—in her mind and decided she had done her best, given the circumstances.

Madge hadn't worried for one second that Gale would keep treating Katniss so horribly, whether she'd scolded him or not. Gale was stubborn and had more pride than sense but he wasn't cruel and he wasn't one to turn his back on his friends. Madge knew it was only a matter of time before he swallowed his pride and apologized. All her lecture had done was speed things up a bit.

Madge had watched Gale and Katniss interact for years. They clearly cared for each other. And Gale had rather obviously become attracted to Katniss in the last several months. Well, Gale and most of the other guys at school, not that Katniss noticed.

But love? No. Gale didn't love Katniss. He loved the idea of her. He loved what he thought she represented. When Gale looked at Katniss, he saw her grit, her determination and her weapon. He did not see who Katniss really was—a caretaker, an older sister, a provider. Gale saw freedom and rebellion when he looked at Katniss. What he should have seen instead was duty and devotion.

Gale was discreet about his hatred for the Capitol but he wasn't so discreet that Madge didn't pick up on it. Katniss agreed with Gale, but she wasn't about to challenge anybody or anything that would interfere with her ability to keep Prim fed, housed and clothed.

Katniss was no rebel. Madge was. Madge _hated_ the Capitol.

She hated the way the Capitol controlled every aspect of their lives, how it kept the Districts poor and desperate. She hated the surveillance. She hated how some of the Peacekeepers abused their authority with no repercussions. She hated standing in the square every summer as the Reaping stole two more lives from an already underpopulated District.

More than anything else, though, Madge hated the Capitol because of what the Games had done to her mother.

Mary, Madge's mother, and Maysilee Donner were twins. By all accounts, the girls were bright, bubbly and best friends with Rosemary Bay, who would later become Katniss' mother.

Maysilee was reaped in the 50th Hunger Games. The Capitol took twice as many tributes that year. 48 young lives sacrificed for the Capitol, instead of the usual 24. Mary—like every other citizen of Panem—was forced to watch the Capitol turn her sister into a killer, before she was herself killed by a flock of absurd, tiny pink birds that looked like they belonged in their parents' sweetshop. Maysilee bled out while the last remaining tribute from District 12, a boy from the Seam named Haymitch Abernathy, held her hand.

Mary was never the same. According to John, Madge's father, Mary tried for several years to move forward. "She really did," he would say, trying as much to convince himself as he was Madge. Mary and John had a toasting not long after they survived their final Reaping. She tried to help him with his a political career; she even went to the Capitol with him once.

It was during that trip to the Capitol that Mary had her first debilitating headache. It kept her in bed for the few days they were there. Mary never returned to the Capitol but the headaches remained with her.

After a few more years, John convinced Mary to try for a family and they had Madge. Madge was a miniature copy of her Aunt Maysilee, except that Madge had her father's brown eyes. Mary's headaches got worse, much worse, after Madge was born. The older Madge became, the more she looked like Maysilee and the further away her mother pushed her.

The last time Madge had felt any sort of closeness with her mother was the day of her first Reaping. She was terrified, although she tried hard not to show it. She was in a new dress and her mother had brushed and curled her hair for the first time in years. Before they left for the Square, Mary gave Madge a gold pin. It was mockingjay surrounded by a gold circle. "This was Maysilee's," Mary told her as she pinned it on Madge's dress. "She wore it in the Arena. It's yours, now. " Mary looked at Madge for a long time with unshed tears in her eyes. Then she kissed her daughter's cheek and they walked to the Square with her father.

Mary had spent nearly every day since then confined to bed. The Capitol provided her with a steady supply of morphling for her headaches. She rarely spoke.

After her first Reaping, Madge decided to learn everything she could about the Capitol who had stolen her aunt and her mother. She began to consciously downplay her natural beauty. It wasn't an accident that she kept her head down, her looks plain and did everything she could so people would overlook her. She became quiet. People forgot she was there. Her mousy exterior made her an effective spy.

Her mother's constant health problems often distracted her father from his duties as Mayor. Madge took advantage of that. She explored their house. She read communications with the Capitol. She found where he kept all of his passwords for his computer system.

Here is what Madge knew:

*Every single room in the Mayoral Mansion was bugged for sound, except for their basement. It had been a coal cellar for decades but they did a gut rehab several years ago. As required, the Mayor requested permission from the Capitol. The Capitol approved the rehab but needed notification of when the job was complete so they could come "replace the mandatory electronic surveillance temporarily removed during construction." The Mayor duly notified the Capitol when the basement was finished. After six months, he sent a second notice. The Capitol never responded and still had not replaced the bugs.

*Most of the public areas in the District were officially under video and audio surveillance. This included the streets, the school, the municipal buildings and the town square, BUT

*because most of District 12 was frequently without electricity, surveillance in those areas was spotty, at best.

*The coal mine was _always_ under surveillance. The Capitol had bugged the mines using devices that ran on a combination of electricity, batteries and kinetic energy harnessed by the vibrations from the drilling.

Here is what Madge suspected:

*The Capitol viewed District 12 as small, backwards and largely unworthy of notice. The fact that the Capitol had made no attempt to replace the bugs in the Mayor's basement, or to improve surveillance throughout the district, indicated their lack of concern.

*The exception was the coal mine. The Capitol kept very close tabs on the miners.

On the one hand, Madge could understand why the Capitol would keep a close eye on Panem's coal supply. After all, it was one of the few energy sources left in Panem. A disruption in the supply of coal would affect the entire country but most especially the Capitol, which consumed more electricity than the 12 Districts combined.

On the other hand, given how few people lived in District 12, and how the Capitol kept insisting that re-population of Panem was every citizen's sacred duty, Madge would have thought the Capitol would take better care of its miners. Instead, miners rarely lived to an old age. It wasn't just the black lung, the burns and the occasional cave-in. It seemed like there was a large, fatal disaster in the mines every generation. It made Madge wonder if the explosion that killed Mr. Hawthorne and Mr. Everdeen was really an accident.

Whether the electronic surveillance was functioning or not, the Capitol still relied on informants to let it know when there was unrest, or suspicious activity or even just mild grumbling. This kept the citizenry suspicious of each other. Madge hated that, too.

If the Capitol had any idea how much Madge knew, they would execute her. Probably her parents, as well. All of these reasons and a thousand others, injustices great and small, made Madge dream day and night about overthrowing the Capitol. She suspected Gale Hawthorne dreamed about it, too.

And _that_ was the real reason she had gone to him today. The lecture about Katniss was just the excuse she needed to approach him. Gale was a kindred spirit—she was sure of it—and she was certain she had piqued his curiosity today.

When Madge arrived at home, she was a little surprised to see Mr. Mellark walking up their driveway.

"Hello, Madge, how are you today?" He was always so polite.

"I'm well, thank you for asking, Mr. Mellark. How are you?" Madge used her "timid" voice.

"Good, good. Is your father home, by chance? I need to discuss something with him."

"Certainly. Won't you have a seat." Madge led Mr. Mellark into the parlor, which had a total of 5 listening devices, more than any other room in the house except for his office. She had learned long ago that her father conducted his business in there because the more open he was about what he said and did, the less the Capitol paid attention.

Madge left to go get her father. The Mayor came into the parlor and shook hands with the baker. "Farl! So good to see you! I suppose this visit has something to with Rye's band?" The men sat down. Madge sat down as well. Her father raised a curious eyebrow at her presence—Madge didn't usually stick around for meetings with constituents—but he didn't tell her to leave.

Mr. Mellark dived right in. "John, I suppose you know that the singer for Rye's band is Katniss Everdeen?" The Mayor nodded. "Well, Rosemary, quite wisely, will only allow her daughter to come to evening rehearsals if she is escorted home after dark. I learned this morning that Peeta promised the young lady that he would walk her home."

Madge kept waiting for her father to lose patience with Mr. Mellark. Peeta was going to walk Katniss home. So what? He needed his parents' permission, not the Mayor's. Mr. Undersee, however, seemed to be taking this quite seriously.

"I see. And what does Marigold have to say on the matter?"

"I haven't told her yet."

Ah. That's right. Peeta's father used to be in love with Katniss' mother. Was _still_ in love, by some accounts. Marigold hated everybody and everything Seam already. Madge didn't think that Marigold would take kindly to having Peeta walk the daughter of her husband's One True Love home to the Seam every night.

"Katniss is a good girl. Responsible. She's been taking care of her sister and her mother since her father died." Farl sighed and looked down at his hands. They were big hands, callused and scarred with burns but they looked gentle. "And Peeta-" Mr. Mellark noticed that Madge was still in the room. He suddenly looked unsure of himself.

"Dad, what Mr. Mellark is trying to say is that Peeta's been carrying a torch for Katniss for years and years. He probably jumped at the chance to walk her home." The baker looked relieved. John Undersee looked at his daughter with a small smile on his face. Then he turned back to Mr. Mellark.

"Marigold would never allow Peeta to walk this girl home," the Mayor stated. Farl nodded his head once. "Unless she has a reason to think it a benefit to her." Farl nodded his head once more. "And...this is important to you." Another nod.

Madge actually felt the plan fall into place in her mind. It just lay there, complete and perfect. "He'll do it as a favor to me," Madge announced. The men looked at her, confused expressions on their face. "Katniss is my best friend. She's the youngest member of the band, you know, and has to leave a bit earlier than the rest of them. Peeta—as a personal favor to me—is going to sacrifice his evenings to make sure that my best friend gets home safely. It will be a lot of work for Peeta, obviously, but it would mean so much to me, Mr. Mellark."

Mr. Mellark looked stunned that she'd spoken. Her father looked...proud of her.

The men left not long after that. Madge briefly checked on her mother, then she went down to the basement to wait for her father. She still had a question for him and she would prefer to ask it where the Capitol couldn't hear.

He was back about 30 minutes later, chuckling as he walked into the basement. She closed the door behind him.

"I take it everything went fine?"

"Oh, my girl, you should have seen the look on her face when she realized that she'd agreed to let him walk home Katniss Everdeen." He kept chuckling.

Madge was happy it had worked but she had to ask. "Daddy? Why on earth did you agree to do this? Don't get me wrong, I appreciate it and I'm sure my friends will, too. And I get that Mrs. Mellark is a horrible, horrible witch. But Mr. Mellark is _Peeta's father_. He doesn't need the Mayor's permission to allow his son to walk Katniss home!"

He stopped smiling. "It isn't about permission for Peeta, Madge. This is about protection for _Katniss_. If this were any other girl, even if she were from the Seam, Farl wouldn't have needed my help. But I am not exaggerating when I say that Marigold would quite happily see Katniss hanging dead in the town square. If her father were alive, I wouldn't be needed, either. As far as Marigold was concerned, Cal Everdeen was keeping Rosemary far, far away from Farl. But Cal died and Marigold's bitterness has festered over the years. What I did today was step into Cal's shoes and let Marigold know that Katniss is under my protection."

Madge stepped over and gave her father a hug. She was, at that moment, intensely grateful for her father.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thank you everybody for the wonderful reviews and follows and faves. Your feedback and support have been tremendously helpful. A couple of reviewers mentioned that they would prefer the chapters be longer. Honestly, I probably would, too, but I've got 2 kids, a husband with a full time job and my own full-time job (50+ hours a week). I deliberately chose a story structure that switched POVs every chapter because lends itself to conveying an increasingly complicated story while still allowing me to make frequent updates. **

**Also, my incredibly fantastic (and incredibly patient) betas all have school/jobs/family/lives of their own. They review my stuff in their spare time, for free. Sending them a 2500 word chapter is a lot more manageable and means a much faster turn around time than if I send them a 10,000 word document. **

**However, I will try to keep in mind that really, there's just no such thing as too much Everlark. :) If you have strong feelings one way or the other, let me know in the reviews or by PM. **

**Thank you, all of you, for reading. **

**PS: Betaluv: Dandelionsunset beta'd this chapter and was immensely helpful, as always. Girl, you have my gratitude and admiration. (I'm sure most of my readers know who dandelionsunset is but if you don't, please go read her in-progress AU Everlark, "Sever." It's here on this site and it shows up on a lot of "Best Everlark Fanfic" lists.)**

**Chapter 10—politics (Peeta's Friday)**

Rye spent the entire walk home mocking Peeta in a really dumb voice. "_**I'll**_ _walk you home, Katniss. I'll do it, I'd looooooove to_!" Peeta shoved his brother away and told him to shut up but couldn't hide his smile.

As they got closer to the bakery, though, Peeta started to worry. "What about Mother?" Rye didn't have to ask what he meant. There was no way Marigold Mellark was going to allow Peeta walk home a girl from the Seam—much less an Everdeen girl. He was going to do it, anyway, of course; Peeta kept his promises. That didn't mean Marigold couldn't make life hard for Katniss. And she'd likely come after Peeta with a rolling pin or worse.

Rye thought about it for a minute and answered, "don't say anything about it yet until I have a chance to talk to Dad." When they arrived at the bakery, Peeta changed into his work uniform. As he washed his hands at the sink, he saw Rye and their father step outside to talk. His mother was in the front of the bakery with a customer.

Peeta checked the order list and saw that a couple of cakes needed decorating for pickup the following morning. As he was pulling out the equipment, his father came over and whispered, "You can walk Katniss home but don't say anything to your mother just yet, OK?" Peeta gave a grateful smile to his dad but doubted his father's ability to sway their mother.

Farl Mellark went to the front of the bakery and announced to Marigold that the Mayor had sent for him. Mrs. Mellark started yelling questions but he hung up his apron and left out the front door. Peeta raised his eyebrows at Rye. Rye grinned at him and said, "get to work, Peet."

The first cake was for a toasting tomorrow. The couple wanted the cake to look like a big loaf of bread. Peeta thought this was really stupid. They already had an _actual_ loaf of bread for the toasting. Why not have a beautiful cake for their guests to enjoy at the reception? But hey, if that's what they wanted…Peeta took the unfrosted, cooled cakes his father had already baked and started slicing them into the right shapes, like puzzle pieces. He lost himself in his work as he stacked the layers of cake and frosting. He had just finished sealing the cake with glaze when he heard his father call for him and Rye.

Peeta walked into the front of the bakery, followed by Rye. Mayor Undersee was standing there with Mr. Mellark. Mrs. Mellark was working behind the counter and several customers were in the store, all looking at the Mayor and whispering.

"Peeta, my boy!' boomed the Mayor. The Mayor was using his "political" voice, not his normal speaking voice. He knew he had an audience. "I need to ask you a favor, with your parents' permission, of course." The Mayor nodded his head to Mrs. Mellark, who looked both pleased and confused.

Mrs. Mellark gushed, "Oh, of course, Mayor Undersee, I'm sure whatever you need from Peeta, he'll be happy to do, won't you Peeta?" Peeta kept an expression of polite puzzlement. Everybody in the store was looking at him.

"Now, Mrs. Mellark, I'm _quite sure_ you know that I've invited Rye and his friends to rehearse their music at my house." Peeta was quite sure she _didn't_ know that but she wasn't going to admit it to the Mayor. She nodded her head and tried not to look surprised. "Excellent. Well, one of the band members is a friend of my daughter, Madge. And Madge is worried about this young woman walking herself home every night. She's the youngest member of the group, so she'll have to leave a little earlier than the rest of the band." Peeta glanced at Rye, who had a small smile on his face. Then Peeta understood-they needed a reason for _Peeta_ to walk her home instead of Rye or anyone else from the band.

The Mayor continued. Peeta could tell he was on a roll. "Mrs. Mellark, I would see it as a _great_ _personal favor_ from the _entire_ Mellark family if you would be so kind as to allow Peeta walk this young woman home after rehearsals? I asked your husband and he said he would be _so pleased_ to do me this favor but he wanted to discuss it with you first. And I _know_ that this will be something of a chore for young Peeta here but it would put Madge's mind at ease, knowing her _best friend_ was being escorted safely home. Madge and I would be _so grateful_ to Peeta for doing this. And let me say how _thrilled_ I am that Rye is pursuing his interest in music. It's just the sort of thing that shows we have pride in our District. Makes us look _good to the Capitol_, you know."

Mrs. Mellark was beaming and it was obvious she was going to say yes. Mr. Undersee had done more than get Mrs. Mellark to agree, however. He'd also subtly implied that this might be a way to make Madge and Peeta notice each other, without actually saying anything of the sort. The Mayor had even praised Rye's career choice as somehow being good for the District. Peeta, who could be something of a smooth talker himself, sat in genuine awe at the Mayor's ability to bullshit.

"Of course, Mayor Undersee, Peeta would be happy to do this for you, won't you, Peeta?"

Peeta nodded. _Woman, if you knew how happy, you'd be saying no_.

Marigold continued, "And you know, we're so proud of Rye's talent. I always knew he'd make something of his music." Rye pretended to cough into his apron so nobody could see his reaction to that.

The Mayor held his hand out to Peeta and they shook hands. "Thank you _so much_ for stepping up to the plate, young man. I know it won't be much fun for you but my Madge will be _so grateful_ to know that Miss Everdeen is getting home safely every night." Peeta could swear the Mayor actually winked at him.

Mrs. Mellark's huge smile faltered just a bit. "Everdeen?", she said, her voice going up a couple of notches.

"Yes, yes, Katniss Everdeen," said the Mayor, who had started walking around the bakery shaking hands with all of the customers. "She's Madge's best friend, you know. Lovely girl, so _responsible_, taking care of her family the way she has after her father died. By the way, I'd like to purchase some cookies for Rye and his friends tonight. Madge says it's to be their first rehearsal. I do _so love_ roots music, don't you, Mrs. Mellark?"

Mrs. Mellark was still smiling but her throat was working up and down like she's swallowed something the wrong way. "Katniss Everdeen? Isn't she…doesn't she live…I mean to say, Mayor, no disrespect, of course but…isn't she from the Seam?" Mrs. Mellark whispered the last two words like they were vulgarities you would never say in polite company.

Although the smile never left the Mayor's face, his voice was suddenly a little frosty. "Yes, Mrs. Mellark, she is. Most of my constituents are from the Seam, in fact. But Madge assures me that Miss Everdeen's home is only about a 20 or 30 minute walk from the Mayoral Mansion. Surely a strapping young man like Peeta here can handle the distance?" Mrs. Mellark nodded, unable to do much of anything else. All the warmth returned to the Mayor's voice. "_Wonderful_! Peeta, I will see you this evening. Now, Mrs. Mellark, how about you box up a dozen cookies for me?"

Peeta returned to the kitchen in a bit of a daze and tried to pick up where he left off with the cake. Rye was grinning from ear to ear. He came over under the pretense of helping Peeta. "That was a _genius_ move on Dad's part, asking Mayor Undersee to help with this but I have to say—even I didn't see most of that coming. Did you see the look on her face when she learned it was Katniss? She looked like she'd choked on a dick."

Peeta shuddered at the visual. Rye cackled and went back to his own work. Peeta started mixing colors into the frosting.

Peeta had finished the first cake and started on the second one (a traditional two-tier cake with basket-weave frosting) when Mrs. Mellark came into the back and walked over to him. Peeta didn't stop his work but looked up at his mother. She looked confused, like she wasn't sure what to say. "How well do you know Madge Undersee?" she asked.

Peeta shrugged. "I sat with her at lunch a couple of days ago." He felt Rye's eyes on him. He wasn't lying but he knew that he wasn't really answering his mother's question. Still, it seemed to satisfy her. She got an ugly, calculating look on her face.

"Well, I've tried before to set you up with nice girls from town and you've always disappointed me. Try not to screw this up. I expect you to do everything you can to cultivate a relationship with Madge Undersee. Keep her little Seam pet safe and maybe she won't see how pathetic you really are." She walked off without a backward glance.

Peeta was used to the insults his mother directed at him. It stung a bit that she called him "pathetic" and so on but what really upset him was the disdain in her voice when his mother called Katniss a "Seam pet." It didn't matter that she was from the Seam. And she sure as hell wasn't anybody's pet.

Rye told Peeta what time he needed to be at the Undersee's and then left. Peeta finished his work, ate dinner and changed clothes. As he sat down to finish his homework, it hit him for the first time what the Mayor had really done for him. For the foreseeable future, he was going to be taking a 30 minute walk—alone and at night-with Katniss Everdeen.

After Peeta heard Katniss sing the Valley song when they were little, he would sometimes see the Everdeens taking walks together. He mostly watched Katniss, of course. She was usually running ahead of them or playing with Prim. But he noticed Mr. and Mrs. Everdeen, as well. How loving they were with their daughters. The way they held hands, the easy way they laughed, how their eyes shone when they looked at each other. Sometimes, Mrs. Everdeen would place her hand on Mr. Everdeen's cheek and he would press it to his face with his hand and kiss her palm.

Peeta couldn't have been any older than seven or eight but he was still old enough to recognize longing when he felt it. Young as he was, he knew that he was a grown man, he wanted what Mr. and Mrs. Everdeen had. And he wanted it with _Katniss_. They would shower their children with affection. She would look at him with love in her eyes. She would reach for his face and he would kiss the palm of her hand and press it to his cheek.

Now he was almost a man grown and he wanted it still, more than ever. And here he had finally been given a chance to know her and he was starting to panic. How was he going to impress a girl who once shot a _lynx_?

Peeta groaned to himself and pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes. And as he sat there with his unfinished homework, every insult his mother had ever rained down upon him-_pathetic, useless, worthless, stupid, ugly_-looped through his thoughts like a headache.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: You guys have been amazing. Thank you so much for the reviews, follows and faves. I've been trying to respond to everybody's feedback but I had a death in the family on Friday and that has kept me away from . If I've failed to respond to you, my sincere apologies. It isn't on purpose, I can assure you.**

**The song Peeta hears Katniss sing in this and the next chapter is "Lovesong" © 1989 The Cure. You can find amazing covers of this song in nearly any genre. It is (IMO) a testament to the songwriting skills of Robert Smith that this New Wave song from 25 years ago translates so easily in bluegrass, bossa nova, reggae, R&B, etc. **

**I used the traditional American folk song "Down in the Valley" as lyrics for the Valley Song. **

**Many thanks to my amazing (and extremely patient) beta for this chapter, dandelionsunset. **

**Chapter 11—rehearsal (Katniss POV)**

After dinner, Katniss washed up and then walked to the Undersee's. As she got closer to the Mayoral Mansion, she started to get a little nervous about singing in front of total strangers. Maybe she'd sing one song and Rye would send her home. Katniss didn't much like that thought but told herself that if she was kicked out of the group, it would at least solve the issue of who was walking her home at night. It was not a very comforting thought.

Madge and Rye were waiting for her when she arrived, looking quite pleased with themselves. Together, they told her about the Mayor's visit to the bakery. Madge had been home when Mr. Mellark had arrived on their doorstep, asking to speak with her father. "I was the one who suggested that we make it look like Peeta was doing me this huge favor by having him walk you home. Even if I hadn't come up with it, Dad would have done it anyway. He isn't overly fond of Mrs. Mellark."

Rye snorted, "Neither are her sons. But whatever, your dad was brilliant this afternoon. I'm going to go downstairs and get set up. You coming, Everdeen?"

"I'll be right there. I need to talk with Madge real quick." Katniss waited for Rye to leave and turned to Madge. "I don't know what you said to Gale today, but he stopped by my house and apologized. He's going to stop by here around 8:00 and apologize to you, too."

Madge had a very satisfied look on her face. "I didn't tell him anything he didn't already know. I'm glad he apologized to you, though. How did it go?"

Katniss frowned. "It was a little weird. He thought we were..." Katniss just sort of gestured with her hands. She really needed to learn how to talk. Luckily, Madge seemed to know what she meant.

"Gale thought you two were going to eventually wind up together." Madge stated and Katniss nodded in response. "What did you tell him?"

"That I didn't feel that way. I felt really bad, though, because Gale's more than just a friend to me. He's...I'm not even sure how to put it."

"I do," said Madge. "He's family."

Katniss felt something click inside her. That was exactly right. Gale was family. "Anyway," said Katniss, "we cleared the air, at least."

Madge asked, "Is he going to start walking you home again?"

"No, I told him Peeta was going to and he seemed to accept it. Which reminds me—um, _are_ you trying to get Peeta to notice you?"

Madge giggled. "No, absolutely not. I mean, I certainly want you home safely. But if I wanted Peeta to notice me, why on earth would I send him home with you? Besides, Peeta already has his eye on someone."

Katniss frowned a little. She hadn't known that. And anyway, what did she care? She had decided a long time ago that she was never falling in love. Peeta could have his eye on anybody, it wasn't her business.

Katniss headed downstairs and chatted a little while Rye tuned his guitar. They were shortly joined by three teenage boys carrying instruments.

Rye introduced Katniss to everyone. Marsh Brocket played flat pick guitar. He was a tall, gangly kid with light brown hair that stuck up in every direction. He had a sleepy look about him. He didn't utter a single word when Rye introduced him to Katniss. Instead, he nodded at her and solemnly shook her hand. Then he set up his guitar over his knees, closed his eyes and started tuning the strings.

Dalton Cartwright was their bass player. He was Delly's older brother. Like his sister, he had puffy blond hair, pale blue eyes and a relentlessly cheerful disposition. He took Katniss' hand in both of his and then pumped it up and down for a full minute while he told her how thrilled they were that she was going to be singing for them, what an honor it was for him to be in the Mayor's house and did he mention how excited he was to have Katniss as part of the band?

Rye finally lost patience and had physically removed Dalton's hands from Katniss. "Dalton! Down! Bad Dalton!"

Dalton looked confused. "Why are you talking to me like that?"

"So you won't pee on the carpet," said Rye. He then introduced her to Mandor Guy. Mandor was short, not much taller than Katniss but everything else about him was big. Big hands, big mouth, a big nose that looked like it had been squashed, big ears, broad shoulders. His blond hair was in a buzz cut and he had blue eyes. He brought both a banjo and a mandolin. He had the deepest voice Katniss had ever heard. Mandor didn't speak, he _rumbled_. Katniss was interested to see how someone with hands as large as his could play an instrument as small and delicate as a mandolin.

After introductions were made, Rye said, "Well, before we get to far into this, I guess we need to make sure our singer can actually sing. I thought we'd start with the Valley Song, since everybody knows it, it gets played at every single festival, grand opening and toasting and it should give us an idea for how we work together as a group."

Dalton played the three lead-in notes and then the boys started a fairly uptempo rendition of the song. Katniss waited until they had played through the intro and at Rye's nod, started singing:

_Down in the valley, the valley so low,_

_Hang your head over, hear the wind blow._

_Hear the wind blow, dear, hear the wind blow,_

_Hang your head over, hear the wind blow._

Katniss glanced at Rye to see his reaction. Rye was smiling and looked a little relieved. He kept playing, so Katniss kept singing. They played through the rest of the song. When it was done, Katniss looked at the rest of the members of the band. There was a beat of silence, then Mandor growled out, "Fuckin' A, man. What's next?"

And just like that, Katniss had been accepted.

"OK, here's what we're going to do," Rye announced. "I need to get a feel for how we sound together, so we're going to do one run through of a song and then move on to the next one. We'll focus on songs that get played at both toastings and festivals. No stopping for mistakes, save your questions for later and look to me for tempo changes. Got it?"

Dalton raised his hand.

"I just said no questions, Cartwright."

Dalton put his hand down.

They started. Rye was clearly working on love songs for the moment. A lot of them weren't really bluegrass but they were popular and people would expect to hear them at toastings.

As they played, Rye would walk up to each person in the band, close his eyes and keep playing his guitar. After a few bars, he'd open his eyes, move to another musician, and then repeat the process. Katniss didn't know what he was listening for, exactly, but Rye clearly did. After each song, he'd move somebody around. Once or twice he walked to the other side of the room while they played.

Finally, he seemed to have them in an arrangement he was satisfied with. They stood in a semi-circle, with Katniss front and center.

After about an hour, Madge and her father came downstairs with cookies and drinks. While they ate, they discussed what they should name the band. Nobody seemed have anything very catchy. Rejects included:

The Merchant Boys (Katniss: "I'm neither one of those, Dalton.")

The Rye Mellark Bluegrass Revue (Mandor: "No fuckin' way, Rye.")

Coal Miner's Daughter (Rye: "I'm neither one of those, Dalton. And neither are you.")

Coal Dust Country (Rye: "Shit, Mandor, that makes us sound like hillbillies. No.")

Warrior Everdeen and her Merry Band of Men (Katniss: "That's a joke, right? Oh my god, Rye.")

Just before 8:00, Madge excused herself upstairs. Katniss guessed she was waiting for Gale to arrive and deliver his apology. They started rehearsing again, only now Rye stopped to tell them what he wanted, or to work out a part somebody might be having trouble with. The Mayor stayed to listen. Katniss was worried she was going to be nervous about singing in front of the Mayor but Rye kept her too busy to think about it. After 20 minutes or so, Madge returned back downstairs. She looked happy, so Katniss guessed that Gale had delivered his apology.

Katniss was seriously impressed with just how good all four boys were. Mandor could play every single song on either the mandolin or the banjo. They had completely different sounds, so what was a lilting love song when he used the mandolin could make you tap your feet and dance when he played the banjo. Dalton could riff any bass line Rye threw at him, no matter how complex, although he tended to rush through the slower songs.

Katniss liked watching Marsh the most. Marsh usually played with his eyes closed but never, ever, missed an entrance. Sometimes, he would take a small liberty with his part and then squint open one eye to see if Rye noticed. Rye would catch the little change, repeat it on his own guitar and send it back to Marsh. It was fun, like watching little boys playing catch.

As for Rye, it was clear that he had more than just an ability to play the guitar. He could take any melody and spin endless variations on it. He knew exactly what he wanted out of all five of them at any point in a song. Best of all, he didn't treat Katniss any differently than he did the guys.

The last song they worked on that night was "Lovesong." Katniss thought the lyrics were kind of boring and repetitive:

_Whenever I'm alone with you,_

_You make me feel like I am home again._

_Whenever I'm alone with you,_

_You make me feel like I am whole again. _

And so on. Still, it had a pretty melody and it was a crowd pleaser. Rye encouraged all of them to take some liberties with their parts. Katniss made the melody soar towards the last half of the song instead of repeating the melody over and over. Rye liked it and had them run through it a second time.

Suddenly, Madge and the Mayor were standing up, Peeta was in the doorway and it was time to go home. Katniss looked at the clock. It was after 10:00. She could not believe how quickly the evening had passed. She realized with a small shock that she hadn't worried about _anything_ for the last few hours. Not one single thing. Not her talk with Gale, not hunting, not food or provisions, not school...nothing.

Rye stopped her briefly as she was leaving. "Good rehearsal, Everdeen. I'm glad you're here. Can you do this again tomorrow night?" Katniss told him she could.

Katniss joined Madge and Peeta. Madge looked like she'd been crying and she gave Katniss a little hug. "Katniss, you guys are wonderful. I can't wait to hear you guys tomorrow night." Katniss hugged her back but wondered what had gotten into her friend. Madge was usually pretty reserved.

Madge walked them to the back door and invited Prim to join them the following night. Then Peeta and Katniss left.

Peeta and Katniss walked along in a comfortable silence. Katniss' mind was still back at the Undersee's house, going over the evening and how quickly the time had gone by. After a few minutes, though, Katniss came out of reverie and looked over at Peeta. He looked at her from under his eyelashes and smiled at her. "Everything OK?"

"Yeah, I'm ok. I just-" Katniss shook her head, unsure how to say what she was feeling. Peeta just let her be as she gathered her thoughts. "I'm not very good with words." Her inability to say what she thought was really starting to frustrate her.

"Are you upset?" Peeta prompted.

"No, not upset. I just wasn't expecting to the time to go by so quickly."

"That happens to me sometimes when I paint," Peeta said. "A whole afternoon can go by and I'm not even aware of time passing."

"I didn't know you painted. Are your paintings as good as your cakes?"

Peeta was smiling at her again. "Well, I don't know that they compare very well. They're very different from each other. My cakes taste better, though."

Katniss nearly asked him if she could see them but then remembered what Madge said—that he had his eye on somebody. Would asking to see his artwork make it seem like she was interested in him? Katniss didn't know, so she changed the subject. "Hey, what was up with Madge at the end of the rehearsal? She looked like she'd been crying."

Peeta grinned. "Your singing literally reduced her to tears."

"I'm that bad?" Katniss worried.

"God, no, Katniss. You have an _amazing_ singing voice. "

"Hmmm. That reminds me—where did _you_ learn I could sing? You said it was a story for another time and we have time." Even in the dark, Katniss could see Peeta blush.

Peeta took a deep breath and blew it out between his lips. "Do you remember our very, very first day we went to school, when we were little?"

"No."

"Ok, well my dad was walking me to school. He pointed you out to me. He told me that he had wanted to marry your mother but that she had run off with a coal miner, instead. I asked him why and he said, 'because when he sings, the birds stop to listen.'"

"That's true. They did stop," Katniss whispered. She didn't know what she had expected Peeta to say but she sure wasn't expecting it to be a story about her father.

"Anyway," Peeta continued, "later that day, the teacher asked if anybody knew the words to the Valley Song. Your hand shot up in the air. She had you stand on a chair and when you sang—well, the birds stopped to listen."

Katniss was floored. She only had the vaguest of memories of that day. "I can't believe you still remember that, Peeta. It was so long ago. I only barely remember it myself," she admitted.

"I've never forgotten it, Katniss. I don't think you understand the effect you have on people."

Katniss was looking at him now. Peeta was looking her right in the eyes and she wasn't sure what his expression meant. He looked so _serious_.

_Thank him_, she thought. _I should thank him now for the bread_. If he remembered about a song she sang exactly once when they were five, had had to remember that he took a beating for burning that bread. But the expression on his face was so solemn, so grave, that she didn't want to remind him of being hurt.

So instead, she asked, "Why was Rye giving you such a hard time about it?"

Peeta groaned and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes for a moment before wiping his face with both hands. Katniss was pleased to see he was smiling again, though. "Because he's _Rye_. Honestly, I was...kinda terrified you'd kill me for telling him about you. And he _knew_ I was terrified. He couldn't pass up the chance to embarrass me."

Katniss was confused. "Why would I care who you told? And why were you terrified of me?"

"Because you're a very private person. Who kills things."

The idea that Peeta was afraid of her was the funniest thing Katniss had heard in a long time. For gods' sakes, this boy was on the wrestling team! "Peeta, I kill _squirrels._ And _bunny rabbits_. You lift bags of flour that weigh more than I do, plus you're twice my size. I think you can take me in a fight."

Peeta grinned back at her. "Oh, it would never get to that point. I'd just throw myself at your feet and beg for mercy."

Katniss realized that they had arrived at her house. The lamps were still on downstairs. Katniss could guess why; her mother was waiting up for her and clearly expected her to bring in Peeta to meet her. She cringed inwardly at the thought of Peeta seeing how poor they really were but-it was only polite and proper for a young man to meet the mother of the girl he was walking home every night.

Katniss invited him in and introduced Peeta to her mother.

"Nice to meet you, Mrs. Everdeen. I'm Peeta Mellark." He shook her hand. "I'll be escorting Katniss home from my brother's rehearsals." They made small talk for a few minutes, then Peeta said, "Katniss, see you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow," Katniss replied and escorted him back to the door. He gave her a small wave and a gentle smile, then walked out into the darkness.

While Mrs. Everdeen extinguished the lamps, Katniss told her about the other band members and that she thought they were off to promising start. Mrs. Everdeen listened with a distracted air. As Katniss was lighting a couple of candles for them, Mrs. Everdeen said, "He looks just like his father did at that age."

"Who does?" Katniss asked. But she knew.

"Peeta Mellark. He looks just like Farl did, before he grew so unhappy." She sighed, kissed Katniss goodnight and went to bed.

Katniss looked out the window into the blackness of the Seam. The thought of Peeta marrying some witch like his mother and becoming unhappy like his father made her sad. He deserved some sweet Merchant girl who would adore him and give him lots of blond, blue-eyed babies. But the thought of Peeta marrying somebody like that made Katniss sad, too, although she wasn't sure why. She finally put the whole matter out of her mind and went to bed.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: Thank you guys so much for all of the follows, fav****es and reviews. I appreciate the feedback. This is a short chapter-I just couldn't resist writing Chapter 11 from Peeta's POV. RL will claim all of my attention for the next few days, but I will respond to feedback as soon as possible.**

**Things start to pick up after this. The players are mostly where I want them to be. Now I can start putting them in harm's way [cue the flying monkeys], or getting them all nekkid [cue the porn soundtrack]. Gadge fans, stay tuned. **

**Thanks as always to my awesome betas for this chapter, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar. **

**Chapter 12—the love song (Ch. 11 from Peeta's POV)**

Peeta arrived 15 minutes ahead of schedule at the Undersee's house that first night. He was hoping to get there early enough that he could hear Katniss sing. As Madge let him in, she gushed, "Oh my god, Peeta, you won't believe how good they are. Come on downstairs but stay quiet. I think Rye is pretty focused on what he's doing."

Peeta grinned, "I don't doubt it." He followed Madge and sat on the second to last stair near the bottom of the basement steps. The band was arranged in a semi circle, with Katniss in the middle. They were facing the far end of the basement, so he saw them in profile, more or less.

At the moment, Rye was stomping the beat out with his foot while Dalton played the bass line. "Dude. What's your hurry? It's a slow dance, so quit rushing." When Rye was satisfied, he said, "OK, from the top."

Rye started playing his guitar and Peeta recognized it as "Lovesong." Not a terribly interesting song but pretty enough. Mandor joined in with his mandolin after a couple of bars. Katniss took a breath and opened her mouth to sing.

Then Peeta's world came to a stop.

_Whenever I'm alone with you,_

_You make me feel like I am home again._

_Whenever I'm alone with you,_

_You make me feel like I am whole again. _

30 seconds before, Peeta thought that this song was mediocre, at best. Now it was the most beautiful song he had ever heard. He struggled to keep his composure but he still felt the threat of tears. Madge was openly crying but, like everything she did, she was quiet about it.

_However far way I will always love you_

_However long I stay will always love you_

_Whatever words I say I will always love you_

_I will always love you_

When they were five years old, Katniss' voice was clear and pure. Now? Now it was love and heartbreak given voice. It felt as if she was singing to _him_; that she was explaining to his own heart what it was feeling before it knew itself. It was almost—almost—too much to bear.

They ran through the song a second time and it was somehow even more heartbreaking than it had been the first time. When it came to an end, Peeta felt like he'd been emptied out.

They were finished for the night. Peeta stood in the doorway. He felt a little shaky, like he'd sprinted there or something. Katniss walked over to where he was standing with Madge. Madge hugged Katniss. Peeta bit back a smile at the surprise on Katniss' face. He made a mental note when Madge invited Prim—he would decorate another cookie for the little girl—and then, finally, he was alone with Katniss, walking her home.

Katniss was clearly lost in thought but the silence was comfortable. Every few minutes, he would glance over at her. She had a little wrinkle between her eyebrows. Peeta had a strong urge to reach over and smooth it out with his thumb.

After awhile, Katniss blinked a bit and looked at him. She looked pensive, almost lost. "Everything OK?" he asked her in what he really hoped was a reassuring tone.

"Yeah, I'm OK. I just-" She shook her head in confusion. Peeta waited until she was was ready to speak. She finally sighed, "I'm not very good with words." _How could you be? You've hardly spoken in five years_, thought Peeta.

"Are you upset?" It seemed like a reasonable question to ask.

"No, not upset. I just wasn't expecting to the time to go by so quickly."

"That happens to me sometimes when I paint," Peeta said. "A whole afternoon can go by and I'm not even aware of time passing."

"I didn't know you painted. Are your paintings as good as your cakes?"

Peeta was a little embarrassed at her praise but it felt so good to hear. "Well, I don't know that they compare very well. They're very different from each other. My cakes taste better, though." _For example_, he thought, _I don't paint pictures of you on our cakes_. Over the years, Peeta had created scores of sketches and paintings of her.

"Hey," Katniss interrupted his thoughts. "What was up with Madge at the end of the rehearsal? She looked like she'd been crying."

"Your singing literally reduced her to tears."

"I'm that bad?"

"God, no, Katniss. You have an _amazing_ singing voice. "

"Hmmm. Speaking of which, where did _you_ learn I could sing? You said it was a story for another time and we have time." Peeta tried to think of a way to avoid answering this question directly. She was waiting for an answer.

Peeta gathered his thoughts. He wanted to answer the question honestly without making it sound like he'd been pining after her for nearly 11 years. Which, granted, he had been. But telling her that would make him sound like a stalker and he didn't want to scare her off. He took a cleansing breath. "Do you remember our very, very first day we went to school, when we were little?"

"No."

"Ok, well my dad was walking me to school. He pointed you out to me. He told me that he had wanted to marry your mother but that she had run off with a coal miner, instead. I asked him why and he said, 'because when he sings, the birds stop to listen.'"

"That's true. They did stop," Katniss whispered.

"Anyway," Peeta continued, "later that day, the teacher asked if anybody knew the words to the Valley Song. Your hand shot up in the air. She had you stand on a chair and when you sang—well, the birds stopped to listen." _And I developed a massive crush on you that's only gotten stronger over the years as I've watched you from afar. _Yeah, he should not add that last part.

"I can't believe you still remember that, Peeta. It was so long ago. I only barely remember it myself," she admitted.

"I've never forgotten it, Katniss. I don't think you understand the effect you have on people." Katniss looked a little befuddled. Her usual scowl was gone. She was looking at him—_at him_—with curiosity. Peeta struggled to control himself. He wanted to gather her in his arms and kiss her stubborn little mouth. He wanted to undo her braid and run his fingers through her hair. He wanted to tell her how beautiful she was. He wanted to press her body into his.

Bad ideas. Those were all bad ideas. He'd never recover if he scared her off. He could hear his mother's voice in the back of his head, _pathetic, stupid, useless_.

"Why was Rye giving you such a hard time about it?"

_Because he's a dick_. "Because he's _Rye_. Honestly, I was...kinda terrified you'd kill me for telling him about you. And he _knew_ I was terrified." _And in love with you_. "He couldn't pass up the chance to embarrass me." _D__ick. _

"Why would I care who you told? And why were you terrified of me?" She looked genuinely perplexed and Peeta would have thought it was cute if he hadn't wanted the entire subject dropped so badly.

"Because you're a very private person. Who kills things."

Katniss smiled. It was a big smile, the kind he hadn't seen in years. "Peeta, I kill _squirrels._ And _bunny rabbits_. You lift bags of flour that weigh more than I do, plus you're twice my size. I think you can take me in a fight." And for just a moment there, he could have sworn her eyes were sparkly again.

Peeta could barely contain his happiness. Katniss was smiling because of him. And whether she was aware of it or not, she'd just admitted that she'd _noticed_ him and how strong he was. "Oh, it would never get to that point. I'd just throw myself at your feet and beg for mercy." He knew she took that comment as lighthearted banter, but he meant every word.

Katniss kept smiling until they arrived at her house. Then her smile vanished as she invited him in to meet her mother. He could tell that Katniss was embarrassed to have him see how poor they were.

Peeta knew that the Everdeens were poor. Still, he really hadn't been prepared for the depth of their poverty. There was a small fireplace and a stove but no heating system. Paraffin lamps. Thin walls and windows that didn't keep the wind out. Peeta wondered how on earth they survived the winters.

He wished Katniss wasn't embarrassed. He wished he could tell her that he'd rather be in a rundown shack with her than any mansion without her. Actually, what he really wished was that he could take her away from this and keep her safe, warm and happy. That wasn't going to happen tonight, though, so he focused on being polite to her mother.

Meeting Mrs. Everdeen was…a little depressing, actually. His father said she had once been the most beautiful girl in the District. Peeta could certainly believe that was true—just look at Katniss, and even little Prim—but it was hard to reconcile that with the sad, distracted woman who shook his hand. Mrs. Everdeen was polite but a good part of her attention was somewhere else. He had the feeling that when she looked at him, she was really seeing somebody else. It didn't take a genius to figure out who.

Peeta said his goodbyes and walked home. His mother had waited up for him. The moment he was inside, she started interrogating him. He had been worried she was going to ask him questions about Katniss but it became clear that she was really only interested in the Undersees. What was their house like? What kind of furniture did they have? Did they have any servants? Did he speak with the Mayor? And so on.

After her obligatory "don't screw this up, like you always do", she let him go upstairs. Rye was already in bed but awake, scribbling in a notebook. When he saw Peeta, he started to chuckle. "Peet, I totally owe you. Thanks for telling me about Everdeen. She's _exactly_ what the band needed."

Peeta grinned. "You're welcome. She's pretty amazing."

"You know it," Rye yawned. "And once we start playing, the whole District will know it, too." Rye clicked off the light and within a few minutes, Peeta heard him snore. Peeta stared at the ceiling, thinking about what Rye had just said. It was long time before he was able to drift off to sleep.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Hi, everybody, hope you are all gearing up for a great weekend! Thank you all SO MUCH for the reviews and feedback. Thanks also to readers dollyluvsya101 and The Quote Queen for the music recommendations in their reviews. If you have music suggestions, I'd love to hear them. (Be sure to let me know if you want Katniss and the boys to sing something for you.) **

**I have a fanfic rec: english5672's "Hot for Teacher." It is some sexy Everlark goodness. **

**This is a short chapter but I'll have the next one up in a day or two. My betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar, deserve daily home deliveries of Mellark's finest baked goods (delivered by a hot baker boy) for all their help. Ladies, I could not do this without you. **

**Chapter 13—another apology**

After apologizing to Katniss, Gale had gone home. His mother pounced on him the second he walked in, lecturing him about "how you've treated that poor girl."

Rory and Vick—the little shits—stood behind Hazelle, looking immensely pleased with themselves. Apparently, they had taken Gale's warning not to tell their mother _anything_ as a green light to tell her _everything_. Once he was able to get a word in edgewise, he explained that he had already apologized to Katniss. Hazelle simmered down a little.

Dinner was a meager affair. He would hunt tomorrow, no way around it.

As he was leaving to go to the Undersee's, his mother intercepted him at the door. "Where do you think you're going?" she asked him.

"Mayor Undersee's."

"What for?"

_Oh, here we go again_, he thought. "I owe Madge Undersee an apology, too."

After enduring his mother's standard, "what-has-gotten-into-you-boy" and "respect-all-women" lectures, Gale finally escaped his house. As he walked to the Undersee's, he wondered how many more speeches from angry women he would have to endure before the end of the day.

He arrived on the Undersee's back porch just before 8:00. Before he could knock, however, Madge opened the door. "Hello, Gale. Katniss said you'd be stopping by." All of her assertiveness from earlier was gone. She looked and sounded like her usual, timid self. Gale wondered if this was because of the surveillance he now knew was there.

"Hi, Madge. Listen, I, uh, wanted to stop by and, um, apologize." Knowing his words were being recorded made him very self-conscious. He suddenly had some sympathy for Madge. He took a deep breath and plowed on. "I've been, um, thinking a lot about, uh, what you said earlier. And, um, you were right. About me, I mean. How I was, you know, acting."

Madge had a faintly amused look on her face. "Apology accepted, Gale. I appreciate you coming by to tell me that. Would you like to come in? You can hear the band rehearse. They're quite good."

Gale was still trying to sort through his feelings about Katniss. He didn't think that listening to her sing was going to help him much. Not tonight, anyway. "Thanks. But, um, no. I need to get back home."

"Are you sure? We're handing out cookies." Gale looked up at her sharply. Was she teasing him about what he'd said last night, when he'd called her cookies "handouts"? Her brown eyes were twinkling at him and she was grinning. She _was_ teasing him. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at her but he was struggling to keep a straight face. He finally quit trying to and just let himself smile at her.

"No, thanks, I'm good."

"All right. Well, will I see you tomorrow?" He knew she meant whether he and Katniss would be coming by tomorrow to trade for whatever they foraged or killed in the woods.

At that thought, Gale started to panic. _Holy shit. We trade with the Mayor—right here on his porch-and the Capitol can hear it!_ Madge must have seen the anxiety on his face because she said in a calm voice, "Here. I'll walk you to the end of the drive." She stepped out of the house, hooked her arm in his and began a slow, casual stroll to the end of their property.

She was silent for a few moments but as they got further from the house, she leaned very close to him and spoke in a voice so soft, Gale had to lean over to hear it. He could feel her breath tickle his ear. "Nobody is all that fussed about the trading. I can explain more later. Actually, there's quite a bit I'd like to discuss with you but I need to get back inside for now. Can you meet me in the Meadow tomorrow afternoon around 4:00?" Gale nodded. He wondered if she knew her breast was pushing up against his arm. "Very well. I will see you then. Good night, Gale." She looked at him, her brown eyes holding his gaze for a long moment as she stepped away. Then she turned and walked towards the house, never once looking back at him.

Gale walked home in something of a daze. This had been one of the most emotionally exhausting days he'd had since his father died. He'd spend most of the day angry at Katniss. They had patched things up, but not before she pretty much killed any hope he had of being with her. It did seem as though their friendship was intact and he was genuinely grateful for that, but still—a man has his pride. Plus, he hadn't had time to process what Katniss' rejection meant for his plans to eventually escape District 12 and find the resistance. No matter what his relationship was with Katniss—or anyone else, for that matter—Gale still wanted out Twelve and he still wanted to fight the Capitol.

And Madge! For years, she'd spoken maybe five words to him. To him, she'd only ever been "Katniss' other friend." Honestly, she'd been "Katniss' homely, incredibly boring, other friend." Then today out of nowhere, she spent twenty minutes verbally eviscerating him about Katniss in the schoolyard. Plus, she dropped that bombshell about surveillance on him. "Don't discuss the Capitol again on my back porch," she said. Yet tonight she tells him, oh, you know, not to worry about trading contraband on _that very same fucking porch_.

Madge Undersee confused him. When she chewed him out, she'd never once yelled but her voice was strong, firm and direct. Twice in one day she'd leaned in to tell him something private and both times, there had been something almost sexual about it. He thought about the way her breast felt when she leaned into him a few minutes earlier. Was that deliberate? Was she hitting on him? There certainly wasn't anything shy about the way she'd looked at him before she went back inside her house. He was getting hard just remembering it.

Wait, what? He was getting a hard-on for _Madge Undersee_? That was...unexpected. He had never thought of Madge as being all that attractive. He pulled up her features in his mind's eye. He saw shiny blond hair that was kept in an old-fashioned style that covered her face a lot. She had merry, brown eyes that were always hidden behind her hair. Soft, pink lips that rarely smiled. Baggy, shapeless clothes covering a body he suddenly desired to see.

He couldn't figure her out. She wasn't like any other girl he'd ever met. He thought about what it would be like to live in a house that was under constant surveillance. He'd barely gotten a coherent sentence out once he was aware of the listening devices. Madge, however, acted like she always did—timid and quiet but certainly not nervous or afraid to talk. Even last night, when he was being kind of a dick to her, she'd been her usual self.

Hadn't she? Gale tried to remember what they had said to each other last night. He'd been all pissy about the Undersees having electricity. Madge had kind of glared at him and made some comment about how "local government had to be available to the Capitol 24/7." He'd made some snotty reply and she'd basically called him an idiot.

That's when it hit him. It was an act. "Quiet, timid, little Madge Undersee" was all just an act. The more he thought about it, the more he was sure that she was hiding information about the Capitol. Or maybe from the Capitol. Possibly both. And now she wanted to discuss something with him tomorrow in the Meadow.

Before bed that night, he locked himself in the bathroom for a few minutes of privacy, just like he did every night. For the first night in many months, he didn't think of Katniss when grabbed his erection. Instead, he thought about blond hair, pink lips, brown eyes. Remembering how Madge's breast felt when she pressed up against his arm was enough to bring on his climax. He came hard and fast, much faster than usual.

He cleaned up, went to bed and hoped the next day was better.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: Thanks to all of you for your faves, follows and your reviews! A couple of you asked me when Gale and Madge are having their meeting in the Meadow. That's next chapter, should be up in a few more days. **

**As always, thanks to my betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar. **

**Chapter 14-the hunters**

Katniss woke up extra early the following morning and headed for the woods. She was a little worried about how things would be between her and Gale since their talk yesterday. She was much more worried, though, about the lack of food in the house. She had skipped breakfast this morning to make sure there would be enough for Prim.

The sun was barely up when she found Gale at the snare line. She said good morning and he grinned up at her. "Hey, Catnip." She stood there uncomfortably for a moment before she began helping him reset the snares. The snares hadn't caught much, just a couple of small fowl. That meant today would be a hunting day. After they reset the snares, the two of them set their bows and started moving silently together.

It had taken them a couple of years of hunting to get a system down but the one they had worked. They walked in tandem, making sure they were facing the same direction. Katniss took everything on one side and Gale took anything on the other. That way, they wouldn't ever accidentally aim their fire at one another. They switched sides often, so that neither of them became too used to only shooting left or right.

They fell into their usual rhythm right away. Katniss was grateful to find that whatever awkwardness there may have been didn't follow them into the woods. A full hour went by, then another. While Katniss was the quieter of the two—she was so small and light that even animals didn't hear her until it was too late—Gale's soft tread was nearly indistinguishable from the light spring breeze. Despite their stealth, though, all they had to show for their efforts were a couple of squirrels. Katniss was beginning to fret about their food supply when they both heard it.

A gobble. Then another. She and Gale looked at each other, excitement on their faces. There was a flock of wild turkeys nearby. Turkeys weren't as fat in spring as they were in fall but they were easier to find. Mating season made the toms loud and promiscuous while they tried to mate with as many females as they could.

Gale and Katniss silently followed the sound and found themselves just outside a clearing. Sure enough, a large tom was gobbling and strutting around, trying to impress a harem of seven females. Gale pointed at the tom and then to Katniss, then to the largest female and to himself. Katniss nodded. They aimed their arrows, simultaneously inhaled and fired at the same time. Katniss' arrow hit the tom right through the eye. Gale's caught the female in the neck. Both shots killed the birds instantly and the rest of the flock scattered.

Gale whooped and Katniss gave a loud belly laugh. This was enough meat to keep their families fed for most of the week, with plenty left over to trade. They picked up the birds and retrieved their arrows, then headed to the stream to clean and gut their kills, and pluck the birds.

Something about their shared bounty washed away the weirdness of the day before. As they walked, they talked like they always had. Katniss kept some of the feathers for fletching. She would need to make more arrows soon. Gale teased her about her arrow-making skills. In fact, Katniss made better arrows than he did but her first attempt was a disaster. The arrow had curved so hard to the left that was more like a boomerang. Gale never missed an opportunity to remind her of it.

The friends talked about where they would trade at the Hob. Katniss wondered if she would have time tomorrow to go to the lake and get some katniss tubers. Roast turkey and mashed katniss with a dandelion salad would be the best meal she'd had in months.

On their way back to the fence, they stopped by the strawberry patch to check on the net that protected it. There wouldn't be any berries for several more weeks but Gale was satisfied that the net was secure. He stared at the patch for a moment and then asked a question that Katniss had not expected.

"What do you know about Madge?"

Katniss thought about it. "She's smart. She's very observant. She's not a coward." Katniss thought about her friend for another moment, before saying, "She doesn't talk about herself much. Why do you ask?"

Gale said, "When I stopped by her house last night to apologize, she asked me to meet her in the Meadow this afternoon."

"Really?" Katniss noticed that Gale was watching her to see how she would react. _He wonders if I'm jealous_, she thought. Was she? Katniss examined her feelings. She wasn't jealous but she was curious about it. She knew Madge wasn't nearly as timid as she let on but asking Gale to meet her in the meadow? "I wonder why?"

"What do you mean, '_you wonder why_?' Just because you don't find me attractive doesn't mean other girls can't. Obviously, Madge is into me." Gale tried to look wounded as he said it but couldn't stop himself from smiling.

Katniss snorted, "Yeah, you could tell she was really into you by the way she chewed you out in front of Rory and Vick yesterday."

"Those little goat-fuckers. Do you know they told our mom about why Madge griped me out? I spent my whole evening listening to the Hazelle Hawthorne lecture series on dating. _God_, I hope I'm around when those two start to date," he chuckled.

They chatted amiably all the way back to the Everdeen's house. They divided up the giblets and most of the meat between the two families. Katniss insisted that the fowl from Gale's snares go to the Hawthornes. The back and legs of one turkey would be traded at the Hob, and the squirrels would go to Mr. Mellark.

Once they got to the Hob, they parted ways for a bit while Gale took the turkey to the Head Peacekeeper, Cray. Cray usually gave them the best price for turkey. Still, Katniss kept her distance. Cray wasn't a brutal man but he sure didn't have any qualms taking advantage of the poorest women in the District. He openly paid for sex, and Katniss couldn't imagine anybody sleeping with him for free. There was often a line of desperate souls outside his door at night.

The one and only time Katniss had traded with Cray, he thought she was there to trade sexual favors. She was maybe thirteen years old at the time. Cray had opened his door, taken one look at her and said, "Shit, girl, I don't care how hungry you are, I'm no pervert. I don't fuck kids." He started to shut the door in her face before Katniss recovered enough to blurt out that she was there to trade for game. She held up half of a turkey pullet she had shot that morning. Cray laughed his head off, then handed her some coins in exchange for the meat. "Come back in a few years if you ever get pretty," was his parting comment.

She never went back. She didn't care how good a price they got for their turkeys, it was too embarrassing to face him again. Once Gale heard what had happened—and after he got over his fit of laughter—he agreed to handle any negotiations with Cray.

Katniss browsed the stalls and chatted with Greasy Sae while she waited for Gale. When he returned, he and Katniss divided the coins between themselves and bought necessities at the Hob. They then headed to the bakery.

Mr. Mellark opened the back door and got right down to business. In addition to the squirrels, Gale and Katniss had a little extra coin. Katniss didn't want to be too profligate but she wasn't going to feel bad about buying an extra loaf of bread.

While she and Gale were bargaining with Mr. Mellark, she glanced into the kitchen. Katniss could see that Rye and Peeta were both hard at work. She caught Peeta's eye and he smiled at her before turning his attention to kneading the dough on the table in front of him.

Rye called out, "See you tonight, Everdeen!" He had a large bowl in his hands and was walking across the kitchen. He stopped and whispered something in Peeta's ear. Peeta turned pink and glanced at Katniss before using his shoulder to bump Rye away.

Gale watched the entire exchange with an amused look on his face. "Hey, Rye!"

Rye frowned at him. "Yeah?"

Gale pointed at Katniss. "Katniss shot herself a turkey this morning as big as your kid brother."

Rye broke into a grin and turned to face Peeta. "Is that so?" Peeta had gone from pink to red. "Well, thank god Everdeen can protect our baby boy Peeta here when he walks her home at night. She'll keep you safe and sound, _won't she, Peet_?" Rye was using that voice he used sometimes when he teased his little brother—talking to him like he was four years old. Rye and Gale were grinning from ear to ear and even Mr. Mellark looked pretty amused.

Katniss could tell that the only reason Peeta hadn't pressed his hands into his eyes was because they were wrist-deep in dough. She shot an apologetic look at Peeta and pulled a laughing Gale away from the bakery. "We have to go. Gale has to go home and get ready for his _date_." Gale stopped laughing and got a slightly surprised look on his face that said, _Oh, right, I have a date_.

"Have fun at the Slag Heap, Hawthorne!" shouted Rye as Mr. Mellark closed the door.

As they walked back to the Seam, Gale asked, "So. How much _did_ you frighten Peeta last night?"

"I didn't frighten him!" Katniss protested. Then she thought for a moment. "Although he was worried I'd be mad at him for telling Rye about my singing."

"Am I the only person in Panem who hasn't heard you sing? When did Peeta Mellark hear you sing?" Gale looked a little put out.

"When we were five." That seemed to mollify him a little.

As they got close to home, Katniss advised, "Clean up for your date with Madge. She's my other best friend and if you go stink up the Meadow, she'll tell me tonight."

Gale grinned, "I never said it was a date."

"You never said it wasn't." They stopped outside her house and split the bread from Mr. Mellark. Katniss could smell roasted turkey and it made her mouth water. She was ready to go inside, take a bath and eat as much as she could hold, but before she walked in, she nudged Gale. "Hey. Are we OK, you and me?"

Gale nudged her back. Katniss could see that there was still a little sadness in his eyes but his smile was real. "Yeah. We're OK, Catnip."


	16. Chapter 16

**Thank you all very much for the follows, the faves and the reviews. You've all been incredibly supportive. **

**Betalove: dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar-ladies, you are loveliness personified.**

**Chapter 15—deep in the meadow**

Gale ignored Katniss' advice to get cleaned up for Madge. All of Katniss' jokes aside, he didn't think this qualified as a date. It felt like more of a meeting than anything else.

Madge was waiting for him at the edge of the Meadow closest to the Seam. She had a large blanket in her hands and was facing him as he approached. Now that Gale suspected that her timid persona was an act, he observed her carefully. Physically, her appearance was just like it always was—plain, drab and mousy. She was looking at him from under her bangs, as if she was shy. Even her voice was its usual, quiet timbre when she greeted him and asked him to follow her.

The Meadow was full of people today, so Gale expected that she would find a place that gave them some privacy. Instead, Madge picked a spot more or less in the middle, where lots of people could see them. He helped her spread the blanket on the ground and then he sprawled across it. Madge sat down, tucking her feet underneath her and kept her hands folded in her lap. She looked very prim and proper. Gale suddenly felt like a slob, so he sat up, as well.

Madge started to speak. It looked like she was talking to her folded hands. Her voice was so quiet that, once again, Gale had to lean over to hear what she had to say. He supposed that to anybody watching, they must have looked like a courting couple, leaning towards each other as they spoke of matters of the heart.

"There is surveillance here in the Meadow but the electricity is off. Chances are, nothing is being recorded. Even if it was on, there are so many people here today that it would be hard to pick up what we are saying to each other. Still, you never know who is an informant, so keep your voice down."

Gale tried very hard not to look around and see who was listening. Madge seemed to sense this, because she leaned towards him and placed her hand on his arm. "Gale, we're teenagers. Nobody is going to find this unusual, us being here on a blanket and talking quietly. If anything, the worst that people will think is that you are taking mousy Madge Undersee on a pity date."

"Or that I'm some Seam social climber, sucking up to the Mayor's daughter," Gale pointed out.

"Same thing."

Madge then listed where it was safe—or more accurately, where it was _not_ safe—to talk in District 12. Much of what she told him confirmed his suspicions, or at least his worst fears, about the Capitol However, she told him two things that did genuinely surprise him.

First, while he was not surprised to hear that the mines were under surveillance, he was surprised to hear that the surveillance was constant, heavy and in every part of the mine. He would need to get word to some of his friends. There was always a lot of discontent among the miners. Gale was enormously grateful to Madge for letting him know. It was the sort of information that could save lives.

Second, when he asked her about other surveillance, especially in the Seam, she didn't answer directly but instead asked him a question.

"Gale, how often do you get electricity in the Seam?"

"Not often. During the Games, of course. And sometimes, we'll get it for two or three hours in the evening." He wondered where this was going.

"Ever get it in the mornings? Or afternoons?"

"No."

"Ever?"

Gale thought about it. He could never remember ever having electricity in the morning or afternoon, unless the Games were on.

"Nope. Never."

"What are most people doing in the evening?"

Gale shrugged. "I don't know. Eating, spending time with family, talking about their day..." Gale's voice drifted off. He closed his eyes and shook his head. He wondered why he hadn't made the connection before.

The mines were under constant surveillance but the miners went home after their shifts. Home, where they would feel comfortable airing their grievances. Gale thought about the last time the Hawthornes had electricity. It had been a few weeks, at least. What had they done that night? What had they talked about? He shivered a little, thinking about it. He felt like he'd just been robbed of something.

Madge squeezed his hand in understanding. She had to live with 24-hour surveillance, after all.

"My educated guess is that they only spot-check the Seam," Madge speculated. "When it comes to dissent, they probably have better luck focusing on the mines or using informants."

Madge then told him about her Aunt Maysilee. Gale had never heard this story before, but that didn't surprise him. People in Twelve didn't discuss past tributes. It was too painful a reminder of not only who had been lost to the Capitol, but of who they had yet to lose. The only things that Gale had ever really heard about the 50th Quarter Quell was that Haymitch Abernathy won those Games, and that there had been twice as many tributes as usual.

The more Gale heard, the closer he sat to her. When she recounted her first Reaping—the day she had received her Aunt Maysilee's mockingjay pin—Gale realized that he had genuine compassion for Madge. True, she never grew up hungry and she didn't have any younger siblings to feed. But there was no denying that the Games had stolen not only her aunt but also most of Madge's childhood. A morphling addict for a mother, a distracted politician for a father, and no siblings? It sounded like a lonely way to grow up. At some point while she was talking, he realized that they were holding hands. He wasn't sure who reached for who.

When she was finished, they sat there for a bit, fingers intertwined, while Gale reflected on everything Madge had told him.

For the first time in his life, Gale felt like he saw the whole, horrible picture. Maysilee had died nearly twenty-four years ago. Gale did not doubt that her parents had mourned the loss of their daughter and obviously, Maysilee's twin had never recovered. But nearly a quarter of a century later, the niece that Maysilee had never known was still suffering from the outcome of the 50th Quarter Quell. The Games were like a poisonous rock that the Capitol heaved into a pond; the toxins rippled outward through the generations, damaging everything that came before and after.

"Madge, I had no idea."

Madge murmured, "There have been a lot of other tragedies since then, Gale, as you and Katniss know all to well. I'm not telling you this so you'll feel sorry for me. I'll telling you this so you'll understand why I want you to teach me to hunt."

Gale pulled back and stared at her. Madge didn't _need _to hunt. She didn't have people to feed, and she didn't need money. Gale knew what Madge was really asking him.

Madge was asking him for weapons training.

Gale felt his heart pound at the prospect. He tried very hard not to think of his plans to escape Twelve. Instead, he started with the most immediate issue in front of him—how to get Madge into the woods. The biggest obstacle to that was the Mayor.

"What will you tell your father?" Mayor Undersee was a good man but Gale didn't think he'd been all that keen on his only child learning to use a weapon.

"That I'm looking for more strawberries."

"They only grow in the summer."

"Then I'll tell him I'm looking for medicinal plants for Mother."

"Will you tell him that you're going with me?"

"Yes. He'll be more inclined to think that 'looking for berries' is just a cover for spending time with the best looking boy in Twelve. It wouldn't do for the Mayor's daughter to be seen at the Slag Heap, you know."

"He wouldn't want you to go to the Slag Heap, but he'd be OK with you sneaking off into the woods? Madge, nobody gets shot for going to the Slag Heap."

Madge sighed and looked a little disappointed in Gale. "Gale, when was the last time anybody got shot for going into the woods? Do you really think the Capitol doesn't know about the poaching and the Hob? Who are your best customers, anyway?"

"Peacekeepers," Gale admitted.

"And politicians," Madge replied, pointing to herself but clearly meaning her father. "The black market isn't a real concern to anybody. If the Capitol ever does come in to shut down the Hob, it will just be a pretext that they'll use to punish the District for something the Capitol sees as a much bigger threat than poaching."

Gale thought about what she was saying. "Like dissent."

"Like dissent," Madge agreed. "Anyway, to answer your earlier question, _I_ wouldn't go to the Slag Heap _with anyone _because I value my privacy and there isn't any to be found there. Besides, my father will probably think that I'm trying to avoid being seen with you so I can keep up appearances for Mrs. Mellark."

Now Gale was confused. Madge narrated for him the entire story of Mr. Mellark coming to her house to speak with her father, and the solution Madge had come up with. This reminded Gale of the issues he'd had over the last few days with Katniss. His mood soured and he pulled away from Madge.

"So you're trying to get Peeta interested in you?" Gale sounded downright peevish.

"God, no." Madge laughed. After an hour of talking as quietly as possible, it almost startled Gale to hear it. "Don't get me wrong, Peeta is a nice guy but he's not really my type. I like guys who are a little more-"

"Good looking?" Gale cut her off. "Rugged? _Manly_?" He didn't really have anything against Peeta but still—Peeta's "aw-shucks" shyness was just the sort of thing capable of bringing out Katniss' protective side. He didn't know if Katniss would ever want to date Peeta, but she might adopt him.

"Something like that, yes." The smile on Madge's face was a little too understanding for Gale's comfort. "Besides," she said as she stood up and indicated that Gale do the same, "I prefer brunettes." And there was nothing timid or mousy about the smile she gave him then. Gale smiled back, wondering what the chances were that this was all an elaborate ruse to just get him alone in the woods.

They shook out the blanket and Gale helped her fold it up. "So what do you think," Madge quietly asked him when they stepped close to bring the ends of the blanket together. "Will you teach me?"

"Yeah. Wear trousers and sturdy shoes or boots. Clothing you can move in and get dirty. Meet me at the south edge of the Meadow tomorrow morning an hour before dawn."

Madge thanked him and started to leave, when he remembered something. "Wait, Madge," he pulled her close to him so he could whisper to her. "What about all of that trading on your back porch?"

"What about it? You've been trading berries and game with us for years. Before that, Mr. Everdeen traded berries and game. Every single one of those trades was recorded. Nobody has ever mentioned it, much less punished anybody over it."

"You're sure?" Gale persisted.

Madge rolled her eyes. "For heaven's sake, Gale, trust me," she said, draping the folded blanket over her arm. "The Capitol isn't worried about a handful of berries."


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: Thank you for the follows, faves and reviews! I cannot get over how supportive everybody has been. **

**I've included the songlist (for the real songs, anyway) from this Chapter in a footnote. **

**My betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar, deserve tons of credit and croissants for their edits and feedback. Any typos are my fault, not theirs.**

**Chapter 16-Five to Twelve**

When Katniss returned home, she was a little surprised to find that there was a bath already waiting for her in the washtub. Katniss stared at it. "You didn't have to run me a bath, Mom," she called into the kitchen. "I would have done it."

"Prim's idea!" Rosemary replied.

Prim walked in with a kettle of hot water, which she poured into the tub. She took one look at Katniss and said, "Bathe."

"Wow, you're in a bossy mood," Katniss pretended to complain as she undressed. She was reluctant to take any help—even just a bath—from her mother, but she didn't mind when it was Prim. Prim handed her some soap and a brush. "Why did you run me a bath, Prim?"

"Because you shouldn't go to Madge's house smelling like you've been cleaning game."

"Yeah, I _know_. I'd planned on bathing, anyway. Why did _you_ run it? And why are you hovering over me like this?"

Prim's answer was, "Here, undo your braid, I'm going to help you wash your hair." Katniss let her sister massage soap into her scalp and work it through her long hair while Katniss tried to scrape all the grime out from under her nails. As she started washing the rest of herself, Katniss told Prim that she had told Gale to do the same thing before he went to the Meadow to meet Madge.

Prim stopped working soap into Katniss' hair for a moment. "Gale has a date with Madge?"

"He didn't call it a date. He said she asked to meet him in the Meadow this afternoon."

"Did he apologize to her?"

"He says he did."

Prim started washing Katniss' hair again. "Are you going to ask Madge about it tonight?"

"I don't know. Gale didn't act like it was a secret or anything, but I don't know that Madge would want me asking in front of everybody else. Or her father."

"Probably not," Prim agreed. "What are you wearing tonight?"

Katniss looked over her shoulder at her sister. "I don't know, Prim, what I usually wear, I guess. Why?"

Prim started rinsing Katniss' hair. "You should wear something pretty."

"No, I shouldn't. Prim, people talk anyway just because I'm a girl from the Seam in a band with four Merchant boys. If I start getting all dolled up for rehearsals, it will just confirm the worst in their minds. And why do you care? What's up with you?"

Prim was quiet as she helped Katniss out of the tub and handed her a couple of towels. Finally, she said, "I hadn't thought about the gossip. You're right about that. Just make sure you wear something clean, at least. I'll help you with your hair."

Katniss put on one of her father's old nightshirts. It would keep her covered until her hair was dry enough to get dressed. Katniss thought the conversation was finished but Prim took Katniss' face in her hands. "The reason I care is because you don't ever do anything for yourself. You're always taking care of me and mom. You even joined this band to earn money, not to have fun."

"I though you were glad I was in the band," Katniss pointed out.

"I am, Katniss! I'm very glad, and not just because you have such a beautiful voice. I'm glad because you're making new friends. I know you're in the habit of keeping everyone shut out, but even I can tell that you've been very lonely the last few years."

Katniss didn't really mind being alone, but she was touched at Prim's thoughtfulness. They went into their bedroom. Katniss combed her hair while Prim picked out an outfit for her. Prim seemed to put a fair amount of thought into it, finally settling on a pair of old jeans, a soft button down that was a faded orange and a cream-colored sweater. Katniss had purchased the jeans last year at the Hob but they had been far too big at the time. She was surprised to find that they fit her fine now.

The turkey dinner was fantastic. For the first time in many months, the Everdeens ate until they were truly full. There was enough turkey left for several days and her mother was going to make soup with the giblets and bones. Knowing that they would not go hungry this week made Katniss almost giddy with happiness.

After dinner, Katniss cleaned her teeth and braided her hair. Then she and Prim walked to the Mayor's house.

Rehearsal that night went well. Madge and Prim sat with each other and took notes as the band went through several songs. The Mayor leaned up against the wall with his eyes closed and his arms folded across his chest. He would frequently tap his foot or nod his head in time to the music.

Rye didn't focus on many of the love songs. He wanted to see how they did with more uptempo numbers that people expected to hear at festivals. Katniss suspected Rye was hoping to impress the Mayor, who had final say in which band played the Spring Festival.

Of the songs they rehearsed that night, Katniss' least favorites were "Love Me Like a Man", which made her blush and "Big Rock Candy Mountain," which was just plain stupid. Her favorites were "Daylight" and "Mockingbird."

They all took a break when Peeta showed up with cookies. He had decorated another cookie for Prim, who threw her arms around his waist in thanks. Katniss had a sudden urge to go over and join their hug. Instead, she smiled at Peeta and gave half her cookie to Prim.

While they were eating and drinking their tea, Rye made an announcement. "I've thought of a name for the band." His eyes were twinkling. He looked right at Katniss, and said,

"The Seam and Eight Balls."

There was a heartbeat of silence, then the room burst into laughter. Even Prim was giggling. Katniss felt her face turn hot with embarrassment. She couldn't _believe_ Rye would say something like that! He wasn't serious, was he?

The only person besides her who was not laughing was Peeta, who was scolding his older brother. "Oh my _God_, Rye! Are you trying to lose your lead singer? And the Mayor is _right in front of you_."

"Yeah, he's _laughing_ right in front of me." The Mayor was, in fact, laughing so hard he had tears in his eyes. Rye looked quite pleased with himself.

Katniss' embarrassment was giving way to anger. This was why she didn't try to make friends. They just made fun of her. She started to get up and leave, but Peeta grabbed her arm before she could get far. Then he shouted above the noise, "Rye! Apologize to your lead singer before she quits."

Rye saw the look on Katniss' face and said, "I'm sorry, Katniss, it was wrong of me to say that. Cartwright doesn't even _have_ balls, so I should have said 'six,' not 'eight.'"

Katniss scowled at Rye while Dalton took some good-natured ribbing from his friends. Peeta shook his head and whispered to Katniss, "I'm so sorry, Katniss. We often wonder what life would be like for Rye if he'd gotten enough oxygen at birth." He looked down and seemed to realize he was still holding her arm. "If I let go of you, are you going to leave?"

"Only if you do. You're my bodyguard, remember?" Katniss was still unhappy with Rye but she'd calmed down quite a bit.

Peeta smiled and let go of her arm. Everybody settled down. They spent a few more minutes suggesting band names, all of which were shot down. Finally, Katniss said, "How about 'Five to Twelve?' You know, there's five of us and we're from District 12?"

Nobody rejected it right away, so Rye said, "It isn't bad, Everdeen. Anybody else?" A few other names were considered but nothing that anybody much liked.

Rye had the band members vote on Katniss' suggestion of "Five to Twelve" and everybody voted in favor. Rye asked Katniss to sit out for a few minutes while the boys ran through an instrumental version of "Whiskey Before Breakfast." Katniss, Prim, Madge and Peeta all went upstairs to chat without interfering with the rehearsal. The Mayor stayed downstairs to listen.

As soon as they sat at the kitchen table, Peeta started apologizing again for Rye. Katniss shook her head, saying it was fine, really. She was hoping that the subject would drop but Prim teased, "Honestly, Katniss, I'm surprised nobody had to explain it to you." Katniss tried to stammer out a response to this but Prim turned to Peeta and Madge. "Katniss can be up to her elbows in animal guts and it doesn't bother her one little bit, but if one of my mother's patients has to take off his pants, Katniss literally sprints from the house."

Katniss put her elbows on the table and rested her hands in her face. "Oh my god, Prim, stop."

Peeta looked at her incredulously. "Do you actually have to leave the house?" Katniss nodded. "But your mother's a healer! Surely you've seen everything by now!"

Katniss dropped her hands. "That doesn't mean I want to! Prim here is the one it doesn't bother. She helps our mother all the time. She even sews up wounds and helps deliver babies." Katniss looked at her younger sister. She was a little annoyed with Prim for bringing it up but Prim hadn't been mean or anything. She was just teasing her older sister. Katniss reached over and smoothed Prim's hair. "You will be a wonderful healer some day."

"Is that what you want to be when you grow up? A healer?" Peeta asked Prim.

"No, what I really want to be is a doctor but that's probably not realistic. So I'm learning everything I can about healing from my mother."

Peeta continued to ask Prim questions about healing the sick. He talked to Prim as an equal, not like she was a little kid. Katniss noticed how much Prim basked in the attention, the way her eyes sparkled when she discussed something she loved. Nothing made Katniss feel good like seeing Prim happy. And at that very moment, Prim was very happy.

Katniss found herself looking at Peeta, too. He was wearing khakis that had seen better days and a faded blue sweatshirt, pushed up to his forearms. His fingers were laced together on the table in front of him and he looked relaxed as he talked to Prim. His arms were more muscular than she'd realized. There were dozens of old burn scars on them. She'd seen the same scars on Rye, so she supposed it was just a part of being a baker. His eyes were blue, but not the same blue as Prim's. Prim's were the soft, dusky blue of cornflowers. Peeta's eyes were the strong, clear blue of the lake on a sunny day.

Rye called from the basement that they were ready for their singer to return. The four of them headed downstairs. Rye put Katniss back to work, having her work on the songs she didn't like. After a couple of run through which Rye kept stopping, he finally gave Katniss a little speech. "Look, Everdeen," Rye said, gesturing with his hands, "when you sing these songs, it's _obvious_ that you hate them. _Nobody_ wants to hear that. So _pretend_ you like them. _Sound_ like you like them. Cuz right now, it's pretty obvious that you _hate_ these songs."

From the other side of the room, Peeta expertly mimicked Rye's exasperated gestures behind his back. Clearly, Peeta had seen this side of Rye before. Katniss and the rest of the band struggled not to laugh. Katniss still didn't like the songs, but thinking of Peeta's antics let her hide that fact when she sang them.

As the rehearsal went on, Peeta sat against the wall and sketched something in one of the notebooks Madge and Prim had been writing in. Prim and Madge braided each other's hair. The band rehearsed. The Mayor listened. Katniss was totally unaware of how much time had passed until she yawned in the middle of "Twelve Moon." It had been over two hours since she'd come back downstairs. Rye told everybody he'd see them tomorrow and called it a night.

It was dark out, but the nearly full moon gave plenty of light for the walk home. As Peeta and the girls started walking back to the Seam, Prim stepped in between the both of them and held hands with them both. Peeta glanced over Prim's head at Katniss, his eyebrows raised in a question. Katniss shrugged back—she didn't know why Prim was doing it, either.

Peeta politely listened to a story Prim was telling him about her goat, but he kept sneaking glances at Katniss. She noticed, because she was doing the same thing to him. Finally, there was a lull in the conversation, and Katniss asked, "What were you drawing back there?"

"Well, I really liked the name you picked for the band, and I came up with some ideas for a poster or a sign. The bakery is closed tomorrow, so I'll sketch them out a little more fully and see what Rye thinks. That reminds me—could you maybe bring an arrow to rehearsal tomorrow night? I've never actually seen one and I have an idea for one of the designs I have in mind."

Katniss and Prim both shook their heads. "Peeta, I can't bring anything like that inside the District," Katniss explained. "Bringing back game from the woods is one thing. Bringing in weapons is something else entirely."

Peeta thought about it for a moment. Katniss could see the very moment that he realized she must keep her bows and arrows in the woods. "All right," he said. "Are you going out tomorrow?"

Prim said, "Yes, she said she was going to gather some katniss for us to have with the turkey. You can go with her." Katniss looked at Prim. While it was true Katniss had planned to gather tomorrow, it was still illegal to leave the District and she certainly hadn't planned on dragging Peeta into it.

"I go early, Peeta and it's a hike. And it's illegal. And messy. You sure you want to? It'll likely take up most of your morning."

"I keep baker's hours, so I'm probably up earlier than you. And yes, I'm sure."

Katniss thought about where she would take him. She had a few bows and quivers stashed in the woods. Her favorite bow was stashed on the way to Gale's snare line. That was where the game trails were best. But there were others. And he only wanted to look at an arrow, she wasn't going to have to hunt anything.

The Everdeen house was in view. Katniss made up her mind. "OK, then. You know the old water tower behind the school? Meet me there tomorrow morning at 5:30. Wear something sturdy."

When they got home, Prim suddenly yanked Peeta in for a hug without letting go of her sister's hand. This had the effect of basically pulling Katniss in for a three-way hug with Peeta and Prim. Then she smiled sweetly at Katniss and said, "I'll let you say goodnight to Peeta." She vanished inside before Katniss could react.

This left Peeta and Katniss standing right next to one another, their arms half-raised awkwardly in the air towards each other where Prim had been standing only moments ago. They locked eyes for a second and lowered their arms. Katniss could feel herself blushing and she could see that Peeta was, too.

Peeta said, "You know, if she didn't look so innocent and sweet, I'd swear she did that on purpose."

Katniss laughed. Prim was working an agenda and Katniss was beginning to get a pretty good idea what it was. "Well, I should go inside and scold her before she pretends to be asleep. See you at 5:30?"

"5:30," he murmured back. He made sure she got inside safely before walking away.

Katniss went to their bedroom, where Prim was waiting for her. "Did Peeta kiss you?"

"Prim! No, he didn't! And please explain to me why you are trying so obviously to hook me up with Peeta Mellark."

"Katniss, are you _serious_?" Prim looked at her like she'd lost her mind and started ticking off reasons on her fingers. "He's gorgeous. He's sweet. He's funny and smart. He bakes. He draws and paints. Oh, and _he has a big, fat crush on you._" Prim folded her arms across her chest. The sisters were looking at each other with identical scowls.

"He does not. Madge told me last night that he has his eye on someone." Katniss deflated a little bit.

"What did she say, exactly?" Prim demanded.

Katniss screwed her eyes up trying to remember the conversation. "Um, we were talking about how the Mayor had asked Peeta to walk me home by implying to his mother that it might get Peeta and Madge to notice each other. I asked Madge if she _was_ trying to get Peeta to notice her, and she said no, that he already had his eye on someone else."

Prim looked satisfied. "Well, you are clearly that someone else."

"How can you possibly know that?" Katniss asked, exasperated.

"How can you possibly _not_?" Prim asked in an identical tone. "His eyes follow you everywhere. He pays attention to the littlest things you do. He jumped to your defense tonight when Rye suggested that name—oh, don't look at me like that, it was funny—that name for the band. He's staying up late every night for the chance to walk you home to the Seam, even though he gets up super early for the bakery. He's risking arrest so he can go into the woods with you tomorrow just to take a look at an arrow."

This just made Katniss feel guilty. "Prim, I don't want him to lose sleep and get tired because of me, that isn't fair to him. And you're right, he shouldn't have risk arrest just to come look at some stupid arrow."

"Oh, stop. He _asked_ to walk you home and he _asked_ to go to the woods with you. Don't treat him like a baby. Let him make his own choices."

Katniss wasn't mollified. "Prim, I'm never getting married, never having kids. Peeta deserves somebody who can give him that."

Prim sighed. She'd heard Katniss' arguments before about marriage and children. "Who said anything about marriage? I'm just saying that you've smiled more the last few days than you have in the last few years. And it isn't just being in the band. It's being around Peeta."

Katniss decided this was a good time to resort to her usual default argument of saying nothing. Prim got under the covers and Katniss got into her pajamas. She got into bed and put her head on the pillow. Prim looked at her older sister in the darkness, before saying softly, "Your eyes follow him, too, you know. You've watched him for years. He means something to you, Katniss."

Katniss watched Prim fall asleep and wondered when her baby sister had gotten so smart.

**A/N: Songlist:**

"**Love Me Like a Man" © 1972, written by Chris Smither and originally sung by Bonnie Raitt on the album _Give It Up_. The later, live versions, are better (IMO) but whichever version you listen to, it's a great song. It's a little raunchy for a prude like Katniss. **

"**Big Rock Candy Mountain" was first recorded in 1928. It is in the public domain.**

"**Daylight" © 2001, written by Bob Lucas, performed by Allison Krauss and Union Station on the album _New Favorite. _Outstanding song, the lyrics fit this story, and the relationship between P & K quite nicely. **

"**Mockingbird" © 2007, written and sung by Minnie Driver on her album _Seastories_. **

"**Twelve Moon" isn't a song, I just made up the title. It's unrelated to the jazz song called "Twelve Moons" (note the plural) by the Norwegian saxophonist Jan Garbeck.**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: ****Thanks to my betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar for their insightful feedback, their eyes for detail and their patience.**

**Trigger warnings: child abuse, violence**

**Chapter 17—the witch**

Marigold Mellark restlessly paced in the bakery kitchen, waiting for her worthless sons to get home from the Mayor's house. Mayor Undersee had agreed to let Rye's ridiculous band rehearse in his basement. Why the Mayor would agree to this was beyond her.

The Mayor had even come to the bakery and asked Mr. and Mrs. Mellark to allow Peeta to walk that Everdeen girl home at night after practice. Mayor Undersee said it was a personal favor to his daughter, Madge. Madge and that Everdeen girl were best friends, apparently. Mrs. Mellark did not understand ___at all_why the Mayor allowed his only child to be best friends with anybody from the Seam. True, his daughter was rather homely and didn't seem to have many friends, but still—socially speaking, Madge was slumming it.

Marigold only granted the Mayor's request because it gave Peeta the chance to win Madge Undersee's favor. Homely or not, Madge was wealthy and connected; Peeta would be lucky to marry her. Besides, the Mayor had asked her in front of a bakery full of customers. Saying no would have made her look bad. Appearance was everything.

Marigold kept pacing and looked at the clock. It was late, far too late, for Rye and Peeta to be out. Marigold knew what teenage boys were up to after dark. She wasn't stupid. It was how Bannock got his own wife pregnant.

What Marigold liked to forget is that it was also how Bannock was conceived. Her biggest regret in life was seducing Farl when he was on the rebound from Rosemary Bay.

He was beautiful back then. Golden hair, blue eyes and broad shoulders made Farl Mellark one of the most sought after boys in the District. When Rosemary ran off with Callum Everdeen to enjoy a life of poverty in the Seam, everybody thought she'd gone off her nut. Cal was good-looking for a Seam boy, no doubt, but still—trash was trash, no matter what it looked like.

Marigold had reveled in Rosemary's fall from grace. Beautiful, perfect Rosemary, daughter of the apothecary and all around goody-two-shoes. She fully expected that Rosemary would come to her senses and crawl back to Farl, only to find that she had been replaced. Marigold had pictured the scene in her mind so many times. Rosemary, tearful and full of regrets, would come to the bakery door, only to be greeted by Farl and Marigold Mellark. "I'm sorry for your troubles, Rosemary," Farl would say, "but I've found something better." He'd give Marigold a long, lingering kiss right in front of Rosemary, who would walk away, shedding bitter tears.

Unfortunately, that scene never took place. The Everdeens flaunted their romance, taking long walks together around the District. They held hands. They smiled at each other and sighed. They looked at each other all lovey-dovey. It was revolting. Being the daughter of an apothecary (and something of an apothecary herself), Rosemary knew how to prevent pregnancy. While Marigold and all of the other girls their age started families, Cal and Rosemary spent years just enjoying each others company. Rosemary didn't seem to miss living in town at all.

And Marigold, in her naïvety, had truly believed that having sex with Farl would make him love her and forget Rosemary. He didn't and he hadn't. By the time she recognized that, she was pregnant with Bannock. They had a hasty toasting. For a few years, he tried to pretend and so did she. But after Peeta was born, she couldn't ignore it any longer. Her husband was still in love with Rosemary Everdeen.

Divorce was rare in Twelve, no matter the circumstances. The person who left the marriage usually received the lion's share of the blame. After Peeta was born, Marigold announced to Farl that their sex life was at an end. She hoped that, by denying her husband the comforts of their marriage bed, he would get frustrated and leave, taking the boys with him.

That would have been an ideal solution, really. Farl would receive the blame for leaving and she would have been free from the burden of raising children she didn't want. However, Farl made it clear he did not believe in divorce. Marigold did not want to face the social disapproval that she would get if she left them. So she stayed. As the years passed, she realized something. She had been tricked. Farl and the boys had stolen her youth, ruined her beauty and made her the laughingstock of the entire District.

Marigold paced around the kitchen, nursing all of these her resentments and many others. At some point, she picked up a rolling-pin in one hand and started spinning a handle on the end with the other.

Rye had started this stupid band against her wishes. _Spin_.

Worse, he had that Seamtrash Everdeen girl as his lead singer. _Spin_.

She had sacrificed _everything_ for those boys. _Spin_.

And how did they thank her? By making her stay up and wait. _Spin_.

They probably weren't even rehearsing; they were probably at the Slag Heap. _Spin, spin_.

They were probably both taking turns with that Everdeen girl. _Spin, spin, spin, spin_.

Rye walked in with his guitar case and she hastily hid the rolling-pin behind her back. He jumped a bit when she started yelling at him. "Where the hell have you been? Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting up for you? How dare you keep me up this late! Where's your worthless brother?"

Rye looked at her like he'd stepped in dog shit. "We've been rehearsing at the Mayor's house. I told you it was a late rehearsal tonight and nobody asked you to wait up. Peeta is walking home the Everdeen girls."

Marigold scoffed. "Do you think I'm stupid? The Mayor said that Peeta needed to walk the Everdeen girl home because she had to leave earlier than everybody else. If that's true, why isn't he here already?"

"Because it isn't a school night. Katniss had her little sister with her. They both received permission to stay late from Mrs. Everdeen. And anyway, you never said Peeta had to be home by a certain time. We're closed tomorrow, so what difference does it make? If you think I'm lying, go ask the Mayor. He might still be up." Rye turned around and walked up the stairs.

Once he was gone, Marigold turned out the lights to the kitchen. She wasn't going to give Peeta a chance to talk his way out of this. She couldn't touch Katniss Everdeen, since she was best friends with Madge Undersee. She couldn't touch Rye because he was an adult.

But she could sure touch Peeta. He needed to be reminded of that.

_Spin, spin, spin, spin_.

When Peeta walked in twenty minutes later, Marigold didn't even give him time to turn on the light. She just channeled all of her rage into the rolling-pin and started to swing it towards him. He must have heard her, though, because at the last second, he managed to duck. The blow she had aimed for his head landed on his lower back. He whirled around, arms covering his head protectively and tried to find where she was coming from. She managed to get in one more really good hit—right on his shoulder—before he was able to yank the rolling-pin out of her hand.

Peeta turned the light on, his eyes wide open in shock. Marigold screamed profanities at him, jumping for the rolling-pin that he was now holding out of her reach with one hand while pushing her away with the other. Rye ran downstairs and stepped in between them.

On some level, Marigold dimly recognized that she was out of control, but screaming at him, calling him names, beating him—she felt so _powerful_. When Farl finally came downstairs to intervene, she lost steam. But still had one last thing to say. It was mostly for Farl's sake.

"Katniss Everdeen is just as big a slut as her mother was. I give it two weeks until she's fucked the whole band."

An enormous CRACK reverberated throughout the kitchen. Peeta was visibly shaking with rage. Each hand held one half of the rolling-pin that he had just busted over his knee. The broken ends looked splintered and dangerous. Peeta lunged towards Marigold but Rye stopped him. Rye and Farl stared at Peeta, their eyes huge with fear.

Marigold felt just the tiniest tickle of fear, herself. She knew how much strength it took to break a rolling-pin. There was a reason it was her favorite weapon. But Marigold stomped that fear down hard. If Peeta thought he could just go breaking their kitchen equipment whenever he felt like having a temper tantrum, he had another thing coming.

"Don't expect that you can break our things and get away with it, Peeta Mellark. You are going to pay for that."

"No," Peeta growled. His voice was so ragged, he sounded like he was nearly choking. "No. You're going to pay for it." There was murder in his eyes. He was struggling to escape Rye's hold on him. Marigold felt her fear returning.

Rye was speaking in a low, urgent voice to Peeta, trying to talk him down. "Peet. Peet, come upstairs with me. Dad will stay downstairs with her. We need to get you cleaned up. Peeta, c'mon." Peeta started to relax a bit and lowered his eyes to the floor. Rye loosened his hold, put his arms around his brother's shoulders and started to lead him upstairs. Peeta wrenched free and stormed up to Marigold. He wasn't touching her but she backed up against the wall anyway. She vaguely wondered when he had grown so large. She had to look up to meet his eyes and almost didn't recognize them as Peeta's. They were ice-cold and black with fury as he looked down at her. She felt the hairs on the back of her neck raise up. For the first time in her life, Marigold feared her son more than she loathed him.

"Don't. Ever. Hit me again." Peeta let the two halves of the rolling-pin fall out of his hands. He turned his back on them all and walked up the stairs. Rye glanced at his father, then followed Peeta.

Farl stared at his wife with sadness and disappointment. That's how he always looked at her after she'd punished the boys. "Mari, what did you do?" he asked her quietly. She didn't say anything. He didn't expect an answer. Instead, he started making cold compresses for Peeta. She rolled her eyes. _God_, she hated how much he babied the boys. She watched him silently as he chipped some ice, knotted it into a couple of towels, and left to take them to Peeta.

Once she was alone, Marigold's lower lip started to tremble and she felt tears in her eyes. It wasn't fair. Farl was taking their side. He _always_ took their side. He _never_ backed her up, ever. Those boys would be spoiled rotten if it wasn't for her. She'd spent over half her life keeping them in line but Farl just undermined her at every turn.

She picked up the two pieces of the rolling-pin and threw them away. The force of the rolling-pin breaking had ejected splinters everywhere, even all the way to the other side of the kitchen. It had to be cleaned up. It wouldn't do for splinters to get into anything they baked. She swept the floors and wiped down the counters, tears of self-pity running down her face. This was _Peeta's_ mess, he was the one who had broken the rolling-pin. She should make _him_ clean it up, but she knew that Farl would intervene.

After she finished, Marigold went upstairs to her bed. Farl would sleep on the sofa, like always. She lay down in the dark and apportioned the blame between her husband, her sons and the Everdeen women. As she drifted off to sleep, she knew, deep down, that only one person in this whole mess was completely innocent of any wrongdoing.

Herself.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: You are all totally awesome. Thank you for tall of the feedback, the faves, follows and reviews. **

**As always, my betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar, deserve tons of credit and thanks for the tremendous amount of assistance and feedback they give me.**

**Fanfic suggestion: If you haven't already, and if you're old enough, go read "The miner's wife," a work-in-progress by MockingJayFlyingFree. It's dark, moody and absolutely amazing. I can't wait to see where she takes the story. **

**Chapter 18—the boy with the bread**

Peeta sat down on his bed, still shaking. He knew that his body was going to hurt in a few hours. Already his knee was beginning to swell and grow hot. He didn't think any of his ribs were broken but he couldn't be sure. It probably didn't matter. He had enough experience to know that after the blows he had just received, breathing would be painful for the next several days.

Peeta started picking splinters out of his hand. Rye walked in and squatted in front of him. Rye looked at Peeta like he was a wounded animal. "Holy shit, Peet. I thought you were going to kill her."

Peeta nodded. He'd thought he was going to kill her, too. He could hardly stand the expression on Rye's face. Rye was _afraid_ of him. Peeta remembered how much he had wanted to wrap his hands around her scrawny neck and squeeze the life out of her. The thought disgusted him. His hands started to shake.

Rye left for a moment and returned with tweezers, a bowl, a towel and witch hazel. He sat next to Peeta on the bed and took one of Peeta's hands in his own. He started removing splinters out of his brother's hands. Farl walked in with cold compresses and sat down on Peeta's other side. "Which knee?" he asked. Peeta lifted his right knee up a little bit. Farl put one of the compresses on the knee. "Where else?" Peeta used his chin to indicate his back. Farl and Rye helped him take his shirt off. Farl sucked in his breath at what he saw.

An enormous bruise was forming over the lower half of the left side of Peeta's back. A slightly smaller, darker bruise had appeared just below the upper right side. Farl pressed the other compress onto the left bruise. Peeta hissed in pain but said nothing.

After a few minutes, Farl and Rye switched sides so Rye could work on Peeta's other hand. At some point, they all heard Marigold shuffle down the hall and close her bedroom door behind her. Peeta felt the adrenaline start to dissipate from his body. Everything was beginning to ache and he suddenly felt exhausted. When Rye was satisfied that all of the splinters were out, he rinsed Peeta's hands with witch hazel.

They helped Peeta take off his shoes, socks and pants so they could get a look at his knee. It was twice its normal size and the color of an eggplant. "Peet, you sleep in tomorrow and when you get up, we'll go to the apothecary and get you something for this" Farl informed him.

Peeta shook his head. "I won't be here. I'm meeting Katniss tomorrow morning before sunrise."

Rye and Farl looked at each other. "Meeting her where, son?"

"The woods."

If Rye had looked afraid before, he looked positively terrified now. He leaned into his younger brother and whispered urgently, "That's illegal, Peeta! They shoot people for that!"

"So? The only fresh meat we ever get is because Katniss is willing to get shot. She's been going out there since she was eleven and I don't see anybody too concerned with her well-being."

Farl stood up, agitated, and waved his hands at his boys. "It doesn't matter if it's a good idea or not, Peet. You can't go anywhere on that leg. And you're the one that broke a rolling-pin over your knee, so don't blame that injury on your mother."

"I don't," said Peeta, his voice resigned. "I blame you."

Farl looked like he'd been slapped. He stared down at his sons, his features etched with guilt and sadness. Peeta and Rye sat next to each other and gazed steadily back at their father, saying nothing. Farl leaned over and pressed his lips to the top of Peeta's head. "I blame me, too, Peet." Peeta could hear the tears in his father's voice but didn't much care at the moment. Farl left the room and closed the door behind him.

Rye helped Peeta lie down, then arranged the ice packs on Peeta's knee and the bruise over his kidney. He put away all of the first aid supplies while Peeta watched him with apathetic eyes.

When he was done, Rye sat gingerly on the edge of Peeta's bed. He spoke softly to Peeta, like he was ill or something. _Which in a way_, Peeta thought to himself, _I am. I'm damaged. I've been damaged for a long time_. "I know what you're thinking, Peet, but you listen to me. You are not her. You'll never be her."

"What if I'm him, though?" Peeta asked. Rye looked away. Peeta didn't push it. He thanked Rye for cleaning him up and tried to close his eyes against the pain in his body and soul. It didn't work. His back ached and his knee pulsed. Worse, though, were his memories. Now he had a fresh set of awfulness to keep him company but the old standbys made their appearance, too: the look on his father's face the first time Marigold hit Peeta hard enough to break his skin; Katniss starving under their tree with a building full of food not 30 feet away; the look on his mother's face minutes later when she raised a rolling-pin above her head.

But he had new good memories, too: Katniss' smiles, which were turning up more frequently and were often directed at him; Prim, who was equal parts kindness, mischievousness and wisdom; the silver flash of Katniss' eyes; Rye stomping out a tempo with his foot; the way Prim was so obviously pushing him and Katniss together; and Katniss singing, oh god, Katniss singing.

Had it just been an hour ago that he was walking hand in hand with Prim and Katniss? He had been so happy to be with her—with both of them, really. Yet he'd also been so anxious that Katniss would figure out that he'd been in love with her for all these years. Worse, he was terrified that Katniss would just get to know him and realize that he was just as pathetic and worthless as his mother always said he was. Then she'd never look at him again.

Peeta realized he had just made a choice. He let it settle in his bones as he examined it from all angles. He finally drifted off into a fitful sleep.

Peeta's alarm sounded at 4:30, like it usually did. He rolled over to turn it off and the ensuing pain caused him to very nearly reconsider meeting Katniss. A two or three hour hike—even with Katniss Everdeen—sounded like torture. But he was going to be in pain no matter what, so he might as well spend his day in the woods with Katniss and not home with Marigold.

He pushed himself up to a sitting position and swung his feet over the side of the bed. His knee was looking better. He flexed it up. It was swollen and stiff and there was a huge bruise, but everything seemed to be working fine.

His back, on the other hand, hurt like a monster bitch. He limped to the bathroom and relieved himself. His urine was bright red. He tried to look at his back in the mirror and see how bad the bruising was, but it was too painful to twist around like that so he gave up. He was up and walking; that was enough.

Rye woke up while Peeta was getting dressed. He shook his head, "You really going out there, Peet?"

"Yeah. I'll be back...well, I don't exactly know when. If nothing else, I'll see you at rehearsal."

Rye didn't say anything further. Instead, he got out of bed and helped Peeta pull on a T-shirt and sweatshirt. He also tied Peeta's shoes for him when it became clear that Peeta couldn't bend over enough to reach them. Rye double-knotted the laces. All the Mellark boys did. Marigold used to hit them if their laces came untied.

Peeta took a satchel—using his backpack was out of the question—and put his sketchbook and a tin of pencils in it. He dug an older sketchbook from a drawer, and put that into the satchel, too. In the kitchen, he grabbed bread and pastries too old to sell and wrapped them in paper. After throwing them in the satchel along with a water flask, he left.

The cold air felt good. It hurt to walk—hell, it hurt to _breathe_—but after a few minutes, the pain in his knee ebbed to a dull throb. The pain in his back, however, did not improve. He knew it probably wouldn't for a few days. It caused him to move slower than he usually did but he had given himself enough of a head start that Katniss shouldn't be waiting long.

It was still dark out when he arrived at the water tower. He didn't see Katniss until she stood up in the tall grass she'd been squatting in. She walked up to him, a frown on her face. The first words out of her mouth were, "you're hurt."

"Yes," he replied.

"Do you still want to go? It's a long walk."

"Yeah, but only if you want me with you. I'd probably slow you down no matter what, but I'm going to be even slower today."

She looked him over, worry evident on her face. "Peeta, let me take you to go see my mother. You really don't look well."

"No. This is something I need to do."

"What, look at an arrow? They'll still be there later. Let's go back when you're feeling better."

"It's not about that anymore. It's much more important than that."

For a moment, he thought Katniss was going to argue with him but she said, "OK, it's this way."

He followed her through the tall grass that she had been hiding in. There was a line of brush behind that and she showed him a very narrow opening that you could only really see from one angle. They walked single file through the brush, which faded into forest.

The forest was unbelievably dark. Katniss moved so silently that, had he not been able to see her, he would have never known she was there. She did outpace him at one point, and he really couldn't see her. "Katniss, you've disappeared," he called. Peeta wasn't afraid, but neither did he want to trip and make his injuries worse.

She appeared before him a moment later and took his hand. Her hand was tiny in his, but warm, strong and calloused. She led him through the gloom. He felt like he finally understood the saying "follow blindly." He had no idea where she was taking him. She could be leading him to his death for all he knew, but he trusted her implicitly.

There was another wall of brush. "It gets really tight up here and you'll probably need both hands to push the brush aside," she warned him. "Put your bag on your shoulder."

"I can't." He could barely tolerate the shirts he was wearing. No matter which shoulder he tried to use, the bag would either rest directly on one wound or would bang up against the other.

That answer brought her up short. She looked at him again, almost like she thought he was kidding. She could see from the look on his face that he was not.

"What happened?" Her question was soft.

"Marigold happened." His answer was not.

"You'll tell me when we get there." This was not a question as much as it was a demand.

"I will," he promised. He had planned on telling her anyway.

She held out her other hand, the one that wasn't holding his, and he gave her the satchel. "Be careful with that," he told her. "It's holding our breakfast."

He saw a faint smile. She hoisted the satchel over the same shoulder with her game bag, and gave his hand a reassuring squeeze before letting go. "Step where I step and try to keep the brush pushed aside so you don't lose sight of me. The fence is just another 15 or so feet away, right as we step out of the brush. If it's on and you come out in the wrong place, you'll walk right into electrified barbed wire."

Peeta's heart started to race. It wasn't the thought that he would be electrocuted that had him excited. It was the realization that he was about to leave the District for the first time in his entire life. He carefully followed Katniss.

"Here we are." Katniss stepped through the last layer of brush and waited for Peeta. He stepped out and looked around.

They stood on a small strip of short grass that ran along the length of a tall, barbed wire fence. Even in the pre-dawn darkness, Peeta could see that the fence was poorly maintained. In some places, the brush grew close enough to touch the fence. He now understood why Katniss had been so cautious about where they exited.

She turned to him. "It's off right now. It usually is. When it is on, you can hear it."

"What's it sound like?"

"You know how at the Reaping, they bring in those big speakers and there's that buzzing noise when they turn them on? It sounds like that."

She looked at him, then at the fence, then back at him. "You'll have to bend over at the waist to get through. Can you do that?"

"I couldn't this morning but I'll give it a try."

She stepped on the two lowest strands of wire and pulled the next two upwards with one hand, giving him a place he could step through. She held out her other hand for him to use for balance. He took a breath, let it out and stepped through. He didn't actually start crying at the pain but he came damn close. When he was through the fence and had straightened up, Katniss looked extremely troubled.

"Peeta, please, let's skip this so I can take you to my mother," Katniss insisted.

Peeta answered her by stepping on the wires like she had and holding them up for her. She scowled at him, then stepped through as gracefully as a cat.

The sky was beginning to lighten. This side of the fence was lightly wooded and he could hear a stream somewhere nearby. Even though it was much easier to see, she took his hand anyway. The walked side by side in silence. Katniss stopped at an old, hollowed log, and pulled out a bow and a quiver of arrows. She handed Peeta's satchel back to him and kept walking.

He followed her to a small clearing with a stream running through it. Katniss pointed to a boulder. "Rest there," she ordered. If he leaned his backside against the boulder, and crossed his ankles so his bad knee was on top, it wasn't so bad.

They pulled out the food, and Katniss filled his flask and her water skin at the stream. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Peeta wasn't hungry—he was in too much pain—but it was good to see Katniss eat. He drank an entire flask of water. Katniss refilled it for him, and he drained that one, too.

Sunrise wasn't far off. Katniss watched the stream for a few minutes. He watched several emotions flicker across her face—guilt, sorrow, anger, worry. His instinct told him to wait until she was ready to speak. Soon enough, she turned to him and said, "Show me."

He stood up. "Pull up my shirts in the back. Go slow, it hurts like hell."

Katniss had a light touch and had he been in less pain, he would have enjoyed feeling her hands on his bare skin. As it was, he couldn't stop the noises that escaped his mouth when she moved the shirts up. Her gasp and choked sob sounded equally involuntary. "Oh, Peeta," she whispered. She took her water skin and went to the stream to fill it up. He could see that she was struggling to maintain her composure. She placed the water skin against the bruise over his kidney, then gently tucked his shirt in so it would stay in place. The water was icy cold and it felt good against the bruise.

She stood directly in front of him and asked, "What happened?" Her eyes were glossy with unshed tears.

"She surprised me last night as soon as I walked in the door. She had turned the lights off so I didn't see her coming at me."

"Coming at you with what?"

"A rolling-pin." He tried to pull up his pant leg up to his knee but couldn't bend over easily. She saw what he was trying to do and helped him. When she saw his knee, some of the tears in her eyes spilled out. "That's where I broke her rolling pin a few minutes later." He let the leg of his pants drop.

Peeta looked down at his hands, which were covered in little red scratches and punctures from the splinters that Rye had dug out of them. His voice was low, and he felt like he was confessing a sin. "I swear to god, Katniss, if Rye hadn't been there to stop me, I would have strangled her. And I don't mean that it just crossed my mind or that I was just very angry. I mean Rye had to physically hold me back from getting to her. The look on his face..." Peeta's voice broke. He put the heels of his hands up to his eyes and curled in on himself a little.

"He was scared of me. Rye was _afraid_ of me. That's not..." he took a breath. The only reason he wasn't letting himself completely break down was because it would hurt his back too much. "That's not who I want to be. And all these years, my father has never once tried to stop her. Not once. Last night was no different. She was saying the most godawful things to me. About me. About your mother. About _you_.

"Dad just stood there. He didn't come to my defense, he didn't tell her stop, he didn't do a damn thing except bring me an ice pack after all of the damage was done." This time, he couldn't help it. A choked sob escaped him. "He's never defended me. Not when I was four years old. Not now. That's not who I want to be, either."

He felt Katniss' hands on his wrists, gentle and warm. "Peeta," Katniss breathed. She gently tugged his hands away from his eyes. She stood in front of him, tears still in her eyes. "You're not. You aren't either of them. You're better than both, you always have been." She reached up to wipe his tears. Not even aware he was doing it, he grabbed her hand, kissed her palm and pressed it against his cheek. Her small gasp caught his attention. He had seen her parents do that. Did she remember? The look on her face told him she had. Did the intimacy of it upset her? She already looked upset, so he couldn't tell but she also didn't pull her hand away.

He took her hand from his cheek and held it in his own. "Katniss, there are some things that you deserve to know and that I need to tell you, but they aren't going to be all that easy for me to say. When I'm done, if you don't want to be friends or see me anymore, just help me find my way back inside the fence and I'll never bother you again. I'll even ask Gale to walk you home from rehearsals. All I ask is that you let me explain everything first." She nodded but her familiar wariness had returned and she pulled her hands away.

"Hand me my satchel, please." She handed it to him. He pulled out the older sketchbook. He flipped it to a page that he had drawn a few years ago and then had never looked at again. It was of Katniss at age eleven, wet, starving, huddled under the Mellark's apple tree in the rain. Peeta took a breath and let it go. Then he showed her the sketch.

She inhaled, a sharp, keening noise coming from her. Her hands flew up and covered her mouth and nose. All the color had drained from her face. He could see the shock in her eyes as she stared at him. There was a moment of profound silence between them. Peeta could swear even the stream had stopped flowing for just a heartbeat. Then Katniss's knees buckled and she sat at his feet, sobbing. She kept saying, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

He placed the sketchbook next to him on the boulder and reached his hand down to her. This was not the reaction he was expecting and her distress really upset him. "Katniss, no no no, please, Katniss, stand up." She didn't seem to hear him. "Katniss, _please_. I can't bend over, please stand up for me." She shakily rose to her feet. He pulled her into him and held her while she sobbed into her hands. She kept repeating that she was sorry. He held her a little tighter. Even though the haze of his pain, and the wonder that she was in his arms at all, Peeta could still feel how thin she was. It made her apology that much more confusing. "Katniss, why on earth are you apologizing?"

"I've never thanked you," she whispered. "I' m so sorry, Peeta. I owe you so much for that bread."

"Katniss, no. Look at me," he gently pushed her an inch or two away from his chest and waited for her to clam down enough that she could take her hands away from her face. "I've spent every day of my life wishing I had done things differently. I knew things were bad for you, I saw how thin you were getting. But it wasn't until I saw you under that tree that I really understood that you were actually starving to death. By then, it was almost too late. I am so sorry I didn't notice before and do something about it. And I'm really sorry I was too much of a coward to just hand you that bread instead of throwing it at you like some animal."

Katniss had stopped sobbing and was now looking at Peeta like he'd lost his mind. "Peeta, you saved my life that day. None of us had eaten in days."

Peeta closed his eyes for a moment and fought off a wave of pain before he continued. His back was getting worse. "Katniss, I've been trying for years to muster up enough courage to talk to you and I never could. One of the reasons why is because I'm so ashamed that I threw that bread into the mud like you were one of the pigs." Peeta was holding both of her hands clasped in his.

Katniss was shaking her head. "It was more than anybody else did. And it didn't just feed us for a day, Peeta, we _survived _because of it. _I_ owe _you_, not the other way around. I don't know if I can ever repay you for what you did."

"Repay me? Katniss, I tossed a couple of burnt loaves of bread in the rain and hoped my mother wouldn't catch me. You've risked your life thousands of times, which has put meat on my family's table for the last four or five years. I think I got the better end of the bargain here."

Katniss had a very intense expression on her face. She stepped back from him and crossed her arms over her chest. "Did you burn those loaves on purpose?" When he nodded, guilt flashed across her face and she looked away. "Why?"

"Because you were dying out there, Katniss. I could see it in your eyes. You'd given up."

"Peeta, _nobody_ helped us. Nobody. Not one single adult lifted a finger to help me and Prim. But you," she poked him in the chest, "you, Peeta Mellark, took a beating for me and saved my life. Why would you do that for some girl you had never spoken to?"

He picked up the sketchbook again and motioned for her to step back over to him. When she did, he moved her around so that her back was against his chest "Because," he explained, wrapping his arms around her from behind and holding the sketchbook open in front of her so she could see, "when you sang, the birds stopped to listen."

He showed Katniss a sketch of her at the age of 5, standing on a chair and singing. She had two little black braids and a plaid dress. She looked at it for a long time, then craned her head to look up at him. Confusion was written all over her face.

Peeta flipped to another page and he heard her gasp. This one was Mr. Everdeen walking with Katniss at age 7, an innocent, happy expression on her face. Mr. Everdeen was bending towards her just a little as they walked, as if he were listening to what she had to say.

Katniss looked at it for a long time, tracing the outline of her father with shaking fingers. She leaned back against his chest just a tiniest bit and gave a small nod of her head.

He flipped again. Katniss at recess when she was about age 10, scowling, with one hand on her hip and the other shaking a finger at a boy who looked familiar. "Is that Rye?" she asked.

"Yep. He had been a little too aggressive at dodge ball with the younger kids that day."

He flipped back to the sketch of her under their tree and then flipped to the next page. This sketch was Katniss staring at a dandelion on the school playground. She took the sketchbook out of his hands and looked closely at it. "That was the next day," she told him.

"I remember," he said. He rested his cheek against her hair.

She relaxed into him and continued, "I had wanted to talk to you at school but you didn't look at me. Half your face was black and blue, and I thought you might be mad at me or something. Then I saw you after school and right after I looked at you, I noticed that dandelion. I remembered what my father taught me, about what we could eat. We had a dandelion salad and the rest of your bread that night for dinner."

She closed the sketchbook. Her back was still up against his chest. She was so deep in thought that he wondered if she realized his arms were still encircled around her. She tapped the sketchbook. "Peeta...I don't really get what this means."

"The sketches or the fact that I showed them to you?"

"Both."

He was grateful that she was facing away from him. This would be easier to say if she wasn't looking at him.

He flipped back to the sketch of little Katniss singing. "Once I heard you sing, I was a goner. You have been on my mind every single day since then. Yet in all that time, I never once found the courage to talk to you. The one interaction we did have, I threw bread to you that landed in the mud. The only reason we started talking at all was because Rye literally dragged me over to you last week at lunch."

Katniss had turned her head just slightly to the right. She was listening, as promised, but still confused.

Peeta indicated the sketch of 5-year-old Katniss again. "When we were little, you were the happiest kid I'd ever seen. You were funny and sweet and outgoing. You stood up for others. Everybody wanted to be your friend.

"After your dad died, that happy little girl faded away. I wanted more than anything to take care of you, feed you, keep you safe."

"You did feed me."

"You know what I mean, Katniss. You were left to take care of all three of you."

"So? Gale is only two years older than me and he's providing for five."

"And I respect him for it but Gale didn't have to do it alone. Mrs. Hawthorne never once stopped supporting her children. Now, I believe you promised to let me finish?"

Katniss gave a tiny smile. "Sorry."

"I watched you start fending for yourself. You started trading with my dad, so I knew you were hunting—which, by the way, still impresses the hell out of me. Do you know Purnia?"

"The Peacekeeper? Yeah, she's alright."

"Well, two or three years ago, she came into the bakery, and she was talking about you. She said you'd shot a lynx and that if she ever had to go out into the woods, she wouldn't bother with her own weapon. She'd just bring you for protection."

Katniss blushed at this and looked like she was about to say something, so he barreled ahead before she could interrupt him.

"I was so proud of you, Katniss, but I was so worried for you, too. I watched you build up these walls around you. You never smiled anymore. You didn't sing. You didn't laugh or talk to people. You didn't seem to want any friends, not outside of Gale and Madge."

Peeta was having a harder time ignoring the pain in his back and his fatigue. He hoped he could get through this without passing out. As he talked, he flipped through the sketchbook, showing Katniss sketch after sketch of her at various stages in her life. "I've watched you for 11 years. Watched. That's all. I didn't talk to you. I didn't try to help. I never even waved hello.

"These last few days, when I finally manned up enough to start speaking to you, I've censored everything I've said. I've been terrified that if you found out how I really feel, you'd never speak to me again."

Peeta had to stop for a moment and let a wave of pain pass before he continued. "You fight day and night to make sure you and your family have food to eat and a place to sleep. I've never fought for anyone or anything. I spent eleven years afraid to talk to you, which makes me a coward. Yet I fantasized about taking care of the most capable person in Twelve, which also makes me a fool."

Peeta gently turned Katniss in his arms until she was facing him. She wouldn't look at him. She wasn't pulling away but she looked very confused and a little scared. Well, he probably did, too.

"Katniss, please look at me." She raised her silver eyes to his. He cupped her cheek in his hand. His voice was becoming hoarse with fatigue and pain and emotion. "I care for you very deeply and I have for a long time, but that doesn't mean a damn thing if I'm too afraid to act on it. After what happened last night, I decided that I'm tired of being afraid of the truth. I want us to get to know each other but if you don't, if you want me out of your life after this, I will respect that and never bother you again.

"You don't owe me anything. There are no obligations between us. You are the single bravest person I've ever known and any man who cowers behind excuses is unworthy of you."

Katniss blinked at him. She didn't look scared anymore but she didn't look any less confused. After a pretty uncomfortable silence, she said, "You've...had a crush on me for eleven years?"

"I don't know if 'crush' is a strong enough word for what I feel, but otherwise...yes. More or less."

"Peeta," Katniss frowned, "you need to understand. I decided a long time ago that I am never getting married or having kids. Not with anybody."

Peeta tried to give her a reassuring smile but he was in so much pain that it probably looked more like a grimace. "After last night, I wonder if I shouldn't just take a pass on a family of my own."

That surprised her. "You'd be a wonderful father! I've always pictured you with some Merchant girl from a good family, who would help you run the bakery and give you lots of blond, blue-eyed babies."

"Yeah, my father did exactly that and look how happy we all turned out," Peeta bitterly replied. "I'm done hiding myself. I told my mother to never hit me again. I called my father out on his cowardice. I've come clean with you. And if it's all the same," Peeta hated to break the embrace he had with Katniss but he was in so much pain that he was beginning to see spots before his eyes, "my back is killing me and I need to sit down, or maybe even lie down."

Katniss led him to the middle of the clearing where the grass was deepest. She helped him lie down on his side, using her hunting jacket and his sweatshirt (taking it off made him break out into a cold sweat) as a pillow. She walked back to the stream and refilled the water skin with cold water. After putting it over his bruises, she sat down next to him.

Peeta could feel his eyelids drooping. The sun was just beginning to rise. "It's early, still," she told him. "You rest for a little while. When you wake up, I can show you the arrows. Then I'm bringing you to my mother to see about your injuries."

He nodded. Katniss brushed the bangs from his forehead and asked him, "I still don't really understand what any of this means. Are we friends now?"

"We're what ever you want us to be, Katniss."

She kept smoothing his hair with her hand. "You're wrong about a couple of things, you know. I still owe you for saving my life. And you aren't a coward, Peeta. You never were."

Peeta was too exhausted to argue. After a minute, she started singing "Lovesong" very softly. It was so beautiful that even as he drifted off, tears came to his eyes. The last thing he was aware of before he fell asleep was Katniss gently brushing the tears off his face with her fingers.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: Smut alert! My betas for this chapter, ****english5672, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar, gave fantastic feedback and edits (I've never written smut before.) ****All three of them are authors here on site, so go show them some love! **

**Thanks to all of you for the reviews, follows and faves, I can't begin to tell you how motivating it is to get them. The response to the last chapter has been amazing. You all make me so glad to be here.**

**Chapter 19—elsewhere, in the woods**

Madge woke up and got dressed as quietly as she could. Her father knew she was meeting Gale for a "walk" but she hadn't given him too many details. Full-time surveillance had conditioned all of them to speak in vague terms, so what would look like evasiveness from any other teenager was considered prudent in the Undersee home. For once, she was grateful.

Madge had put a lot of thought into the outfit she was going to wear to the woods today. For the last four years, she wore drab, baggy dresses everyday, all day. Initially, she wore them because the dresses acted as social camouflage. The plainness helped her blend into the background. As she hit puberty, however, the dresses had the added benefit of completely hiding her figure. In what Madge was sure could only have been some sort of cosmic joke, she had been blessed with a stunning, hourglass figure that she spent a lot of time and energy trying to hide.

Not today. Today, Madge wanted—and intended to have—Gale's undivided attention. Madge looked at herself in the full length mirror. She wore tight, low-cut jeans, and a form-fitting, long-sleeved, dark green shirt, untucked and scrunched up a little at her waist. Beat up sneakers and a ponytail completed her look. She wore no jewelry.

Everything she wore emphasized her curves. Having all of her hair out of her face revealed her delicate features. Satisfied with the results, she brushed her teeth, put on an old, shapeless canvas jacket that covered everything up down to her knees, and left the house.

She and Gale arrived at nearly the same time. He nodded in approval at her hair. "Good," he said, "it will keep the hair out of your eyes." She followed him to the edge of the Meadow and through a copse of trees. They walked to the fence. It wasn't on at the moment and Gale explained how to tell if it was. Then they shimmied underneath it.

He led her through the woods, stopping at one point to remove a bow and quiver from a hollow in a tree. He showed her the snare lines. There was a rabbit in one of them. Gale put the rabbit in his game bag and re-set the snare. As they walked, he pointed out game trails and showed her how to walk so she made less noise. She was impressed with how resourceful Gale and Katniss had been all these years, and told him so. He seemed surprised and a little pleased at her praise.

Finally, they arrived in a clearing that had a small rise at one end. "I'm going to teach you the basics by having you shoot into the side of that hill," he told her. "Once you've learned some control, we'll switch to smaller targets. Go ahead and take off your jacket and we'll get started."

This was it. Madge had to turn her back to hide the shaking in her hands as she shrugged off her jacket. She tossed it onto the ground, then turned to face Gale.

He was staring at her, open-mouthed. He looked her in the eye for a moment, then gently set the bow and quiver on the ground. His eyes narrowed. He almost looked angry. He placed his hands down low on his hips, his long fingers splayed and relaxed just over his front pockets. He made no attempt to hide the fact that he was inspecting her from head to toe. He also didn't seem the least bit embarrassed by the growing bulge in his pants.

Suddenly and without any warning, Gale strode over, grabbed her by the waist and pulled her to him. He ground his pelvis into hers, making certain that she felt his enormous erection pressing into her. Her heart started to race and she was suddenly, deeply, aroused.

"Are you playing a game with me, Madge?" he growled. "Is this some kind of Merchant girl power play, toying with the poor kid from the Seam?" He kept one hand in the middle of her lower back to keep his groin pressed into her.

Madge felt a flood of heat between her legs. "Not a game," she breathed. "I want to seduce you."

"Be careful what you wish for, little girl," Gale warned. Then he dipped his head to run his tongue around her earlobe.

She pushed one hand through his hair and yanked it hard enough to make him pull back and look at her. "Gale?" Madge took her other hand, placed it over his erection and gave it a squeeze. "The next time you call me 'little girl', I'll bring Katniss out here and seduce her, instead."

She didn't have time to appreciate the look on his face at _that_ threat, because faster than Madge could process it, Gale's mouth was on hers. His hands were everywhere; sliding over her ass, tugging on her hair, under her shirt and on her breasts. Gale groaned when he realized she wasn't wearing a bra. He pulled away from their kiss long just long enough to pull them to the ground. She lay on her back and pulled him on top of her. Gale relentlessly pumped his hips into hers. She could feel her own wetness seeping though her panties.

He sat back on his knees, flung off his jacket and pulled off his shirt. She ran her hands across his smooth, muscular chest. "Fuck, you're gorgeous, Gale," Madge breathed.

"Say that again," he demanded, unzipping his pants.

"You're gorgeous, Gale."

"Not that."

She looked him in the eye. "Fuck," she whispered. He made a noise in the back of throat and pushed his pants down around his hips a bit, not exposing himself but giving them both easy access. He stripped off her shirt and pushed her back down onto her back. He knelt between her legs which were steepled on either side of him.

He gazed on her breasts for a moment. He slowly ran his hands up her sides until he was cupping her breasts, his thumbs brushing her nipples. "Why the act, Madge?" He leaned down and took a pink nipple in his mouth. "Why hide yourself?" She inhaled sharply and moaned in pleasure. She felt him smile against her skin.

"I see and hear more when people forget I'm there," she panted out. "Now quit dicking around and take off my pants."

"Don't tell me what to do," he said, as he took off her pants.

"Take off your pants, too," she ordered.

"Goddamnit, Madge," he said as he sat up just long enough to kick off his own pants, "stop telling me what to do."

"Shut up. I want to look at you." Madge sat up, knelt next to Gale and pushed him onto his back. She slid his boxers down and looked at all of him. It was the first time she'd ever seen a naked man and she was going to indulge her curiosity.

He was glorious. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, rock hard abs. She ran her fingers down the length of his erect cock, which really didn't look anything like the drawings they had in their biology books at school. He was long—longer than she'd expected—and thick. It jumped at her touch. She looked up at his face. He was still on his back but had propped himself up on his elbows, watching her. She continued to stroke him with her fingers while she watched him. His eyes were half-closed with lust and he was breathing hard. "You have the most beautiful cock," she said. Then, never breaking eye contact with him, she bent her head to the base of his shaft and slowly ran her tongue up his length.

Gale let his head fall backwards, then lay all the way down on his back. When she took the tip into her mouth and swirled her tongue around it, he wrapped her ponytail around one hand and guided her head with the other. She tried to take him in slowly, but he started to buck his hips. It made her gag and she had to pull away. "Sorry," he gasped. "I'll, uh, try not to do that again." She took him in her mouth again, this time holding on to the base of his cock to prevent him from going in too far. She moved her head up and down.

She heard him whisper her name. Hearing it made her even wetter than she was already, and she moaned in pleasure. He started bucking his hips again but this time, she was prepared for it. Gale was almost chanting her name, now, his voice ragged and hoarse. He came in her mouth, pulsing with a force that surprised her. She didn't expect there to be a taste but found she didn't mind it so much. She swallowed it all before releasing him.

Gale lay immobile for a moment, panting hard. He pulled her up to him and held her tight on his chest. Very gently, he rolled her onto her back. Propping himself over her using his elbows for leverage, he stared into her eyes for a long minute. Neither of them said anything. He rolled off to one side a little bit, then slid his hand down to her panties. He started circling her clit through the cotton. Her mouth went slack as she felt him add a little pressure.

"Say my name," he ordered, his voice quiet but insistent.

"Gale Hawthorne, take off my panties," was her reply.

His mouth quirked up a bit. He slid her panties down and pushed her thighs apart. His fingers found her clit again. Then one long finger dipped inside her. She found herself whimpering a little. He started kissing her neck. "You're so wet. Fuck, Madge, I'm getting hard again."

He took a nipple in his mouth and she felt another gush of warmth between her legs. "Harder," she pleaded, "suck them harder."

He took his mouth off of her breast and stopped moving his fingers. There was a glint in his eye. "Say please," he smirked.

She threaded her fingers through his hair and pulled just hard enough to make his cock jump. "Fucking _please_."

He sucked her nipple so hard that she shouted out, "Oh!" in surprise. His erection was hot against her thigh. She knew she was getting close. She reached for his cock. He repositioned himself so that she could hold him. He was just as hard as he had been a few minutes earlier. She stroked him, and he increased the pressure as he slid one finger, then two, then three, in and out of her. She found herself whispering, "yes, yes, yes" as she bucked against his hand. She shouted his name once, then finally found her release. A moment later, he came again.

The whole thing from start to finish had taken maybe 10 minutes.

Gale was holding her again but she was beginning to shiver. The sun was barely up and it was too cold to be naked. She disentangled herself, sat up and started looking around for clothes. Gale joined her after a moment and they silently dressed, handing each other articles of clothing as they found them.

Once they were dressed, Gale did something she did not expect. He hugged her from behind, then pulled them down so that he was sitting on the ground and she was cradled on his lap. He hugged her tightly. She wrapped her arms around him. "What the fuck just happened, Madge?" he asked. His voice was quiet and hoarse.

She moved around so that they were facing each other. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulled the elastic out of her hair, and smoothed her hair back into a more presentable ponytail while she thought of the best way to answer his question.

She couldn't honestly say she was in love with Gale; it was too soon for that. She was open to the possibility, certainly, but there was much more at stake here than just a high school romance. She decided that full disclosure was best. Besides, they could speak freely here.

"You're the first guy I've ever kissed."

Gale's jaw dropped a little. "What? Seriously? So...all that other stuff?"

"First time," Madge admitted.

"How did you know how to..."

"Like I said, I see and hear more when people forget I'm there. Monday morning in the girls' locker room is when the girls at school talk about what they did at the Slag Heap, or what they saw somebody do, or what they want to do." These conversations were the primary reason Madge would never, ever, go to the Slag Heap.

"But you've never done any of it before?"

Madge shook her head. "No. I've never been much interested in boys. You, however, are not a boy. You're a man. You have been for a long time. I know you had hopes for you and Katniss, but right at this second, I'm really happy that it didn't work out." She ran her fingertips along his jaw. His gray eyes narrowed with suspicion.

"So that lecture you gave me about Katniss being like a kid sister—was that just so you could have me all to yourself?"

Madge laughed at this. "Please. Gale, if you jumped Katniss like you just did me, what would she do? Think about it for a moment. If you grabbed Katniss Everdeen around the waist and did the bump-and-grind with your massive erection, what do you think she would she do?"

Gale's eyes lit up. "You just said I'm 'massive.'"

"Well, I have nothing to compare it to, but you looked big to me. And you didn't answer the question. What would Katniss do?"

"Shoot me. Or worse, start crying."

Madge nodded. "Gale, if I really believed that you and Katniss had any sort of future, I wouldn't be here in your lap. However, I _would_ still be asking you to teach me how to shoot. I'd just be struggling to keep my hands to myself."

"Were you planning to seduce me when you asked me to meet you?" Gale ran one of hands up her back and pulled her a little closer.

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because you're sexy, gorgeous and smart. Because everything about you turns me on. And your attitude towards the Capitol convinced me to take this risk."

Gale looked over at the bow and arrows. "So learning how to shoot wasn't just an excuse to get me out here?"

"Not entirely, no. If all I wanted to do was learn to shoot, I could have asked Katniss. But when it comes to the Capitol, you and I want the same thing. I don't want to just learn how to shoot. I want to do something. If there's a resistance out there, I want to find it. If there isn't, I want to start it. But whatever it is, I want to do it with you."

He stared at her for a long time, his expression unreadable. Madge's heart started to sink. Had she misread him? She really thought they were on the same page about the Capitol. But maybe he was the kind of guy who lost interest in a girl after he'd felt her up or something.

She sighed, trying to hide her disappointment. "Look, if you are no longer interested in teaching me, let me know now. For that matter, if you're no longer interested in fooling around, let me know now. Just...don't lie to me about it. And whatever you do, don't treat me like I'm a pity fuck or something, OK?"

Gale gently ran his knuckles over her cheek and whispered her full name, _Madge Undersee_. Madge found herself deeply moved by this unexpected gesture of tenderness. She looked down so he wouldn't see her blush. He took her face in both of his hands and tilted it up to meet his gaze. Usually, his eyes were hard, closed off. The look he was giving her now was soft and warm. "I don't pity you, Madge. I'll teach you. I still want to fool around with you. I just don't know what I am to you."

She kissed him. "We're lovers," she said. She watched his eyes smolder as the import of her words sunk in.

They stood up. Gale picked up the bow and arrows and said, "OK, let's start with your stance."

The lovers worked in the sun the rest of the morning, both of them happier than they had been in a very long time.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: You may (or may not) have noticed that I changed the cover art to a scene that I drew for Chapter 18. You can see a higher-res version at my tumblr, shewhodraws. **

**The next few chapters are all Everlark, but have faith, Gadge fans. Gale and Madge are central to the plot, so don't think I'm ignoring them now that they've learned how to exchange body fluids. **

**Thanks, as always, to my mighty betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar. **

**I hope everybody has a wonderful Mother's Day! **

**Chapter 20—the apothecary's daughter**

Katniss sang until Peeta was fully asleep. Then she sat and watched the sunrise while she thought about everything Peeta had said to her. The more she thought about it, the more confused she became. Finally, frustrated with her inability to come to any conclusion, she yanked off her boots and socks, stood up, grabbed her bow and quiver, and walked to the stream. If Peeta was going to sleep, she might as well gather some food.

She made sure Peeta was always within her line of sight. She doubted there were any large predators nearby, as they were still quite close to the fence. But it wouldn't do to have a Merchant kid die on her hands the first time she helped him commit a capital offense.

Katniss tubers weren't as abundant now as they would be mid-summer but there were still plenty of plants along the stream bed. She used a stick and her toes to dig in the mud until the tuber floated to the surface. She made sure to leave plenty to grow and harvest later.

As she wandered up and down both sides of the stream, she tried to sort out what Peeta had said to her.

Out of all the things she'd learned this morning, the only thing that really bothered her was that Peeta burned that bread on purpose because he had a crush on her. That made the beating as much her fault as it was Mrs. Mellark's. He insisted that she didn't owe him anything, but trading squirrels with Mr. Mellark didn't really count in Katniss' mind. She'd traded those squirrels for bread, not to repay Peeta.

Had Peeta's dad really been in love with her mom? She'd heard over the years that Rosemary Bay had been a beauty, but Katniss simply couldn't picture her mother as a teenager who dated other boys before she met Cal Everdeen. To Katniss, her parents were a single unit that had simply always been. When her father died, her mother died, too. Now all that was left of Rosemary and Cal Everdeen was much less than half of their previous whole.

Katniss also didn't understand some of Peeta's feelings. Well, she understood that he felt what he felt; she just she couldn't understand _why_.

Like this business with his mother. He _didn't_ kill her. Yeah, he wanted to, but so what? Half of Twelve had wanted that evil bitch dead at one time or another and she hadn't kidney-punched any of _those_ people with a rolling-pin.

Ripper, the one-armed purveyor of white liquor in the Hob, was one of those people. Last year, she told Katniss and Gale a story about Mrs. Mellark. Once, after an especially profitable week, she decided to treat herself to some bakery bread. When she walked into the bakery, though, Mrs. Mellark had screeched at her in front of a bakery full of customers. She called Ripper "Seamtrash." Ripper didn't much like it, but it wasn't anything she hadn't heard already that day.

But then Mrs. Mellark ordered her to leave, saying she "only sold to people with two hands."

"My god, was I angry," Ripper told them. "One a' these days, that woman's gonna piss off the wrong person and show up dead. Lemme tell you, no Peacekeeper's gonna bust a nut looking for who dunnit, neither. Some people just need killin'."

And then Ripper confessed else to Katniss, "Listed, girlie, I'm sorry to say as I was leavin', I yelled out, 'No wonder your husband's in love with somebody else.' Every person in there heard what I was talkin' about. Even her sons and husband." Ripper then gave Katniss a significant look.

At the time, Katniss hadn't understood that reference. She did now.

Katniss also didn't get why Peeta felt like a coward for not helping her more. He'd been a child, just like her. What did he think he was supposed to have done, live with both eyes always blackened?

As for his fear that he would be like his father, that was just plain ridiculous. The day Peeta Mellark stood by and did nothing while his own children were being beaten would be the day the world stopped spinning on its axis.

Katniss couldn't make heads or tails out of the whole crush thing. She had tried to set the record straight about a couple of things—that lynx wasn't exactly a power-kill, for example—but he was so set on finishing what he had to say that she didn't get the chance.

And that sketchbook. All those drawings made her feel kind of...exposed. Vulnerable. Had it been anybody else, she would have pulled out her knife. But Peeta had been so unflinchingly honest about it. Was that what he meant when he said he was a coward for not talking to her for all these years? That he could pour that much energy into drawing all of those scenes from Katniss' life but that he couldn't even say hello?

But far and away, the most confusing thing about the entire morning was how she had felt in Peeta's arms. Katniss had _never_ thought of herself as one of those girls who wanted cuddles and kisses from a boy. She didn't want a boyfriend. She was never going to fall in love. Love made you weak. Love had taken her mother from her when she'd needed her most.

Yet, she'd spent quite a lot of time this morning with Peeta basically wrapped around her. Peeta had held her against his chest when she cried. He'd embraced her from behind while he showed her the sketchbook. At one point, he'd even put his hand on her cheek, and she'd thought he might kiss her. He hadn't—she was grateful for that, she wasn't anywhere close to ready yet—but she found that the thought didn't bug her like it should.

He kept giving her all these outs, too. He'd said that if she wanted him out of her life, she only had to say so. Why hadn't she? Why hadn't she pulled away? Katniss kept thinking about how it felt to be in his arms, and how Peeta thought himself a fool for wanting to take care of her. And that's when it hit her.

She'd felt _safe_. Peeta Mellark made her feel safe. And she had no idea why. She just knew it was true.

Katniss had gathered enough katniss roots for supper. She walked back to where Peeta was sleeping and sat down. She studied him while she put her socks and boots back on. She'd never noticed how long his eyelashes were, almost as long as a girl's.

Katniss looked up at the sun. Less than an hour had gone by. She would let Peeta sleep a little more, then wake him up if he wanted to sketch her arrows. She reached into the satchel and looked for the sketchbook. There were two of them, but she only took the one he'd shown already shown her. She was curious about the other one but she left it alone. If Peeta wanted her to see it, he'd let her know.

She looked through the sketchbook again. When Peeta had shown it to her earlier, Katniss had been in so much shock from seeing herself under that tree that she didn't process just how incredibly good the drawing were. No wonder Peeta decorated the cakes. Why hadn't she ever seen any of his artwork up at school? There were contests and classes each year and the students' works were displayed in the hallways. Peeta's work outclassed anything there.

Although Peeta certainly sketched her a lot, she was a little relieved to see that he had turned his talent to other subjects, as well. Some were day-in-the-life kinds of sketches from the bakery: Rye and Bannock with bags of flour on their shoulders, or Mr. Mellark frosting cupcakes. Stuff like that.

Others were chilling. Mr. Mellark, looking sad, was holding a cold compress to the bruised face of a little blond boy who was sitting on a bed. Another was the point of view of the artist, looking down at his own left arm, resting casually on a desk at school. There were papers and pencils scattered on the desk. A little bit of graffiti scratched into the desk was visible underneath one of the papers. His lower legs and feet, sneaker-clad, ankles crossed, stuck out from under the desk. The arm was swollen, and covered in bruises and burns.

The only sketch of Mrs. Mellark was of her standing at the back door of the bakery, screaming at somebody. It was the sketch immediately before the one with Katniss under their tree.

There was a sketch of the Reaping. She stared at that one for a long time. Based on the ages of the kids around him, this must be what Peeta saw at their first Reaping. Effie Trinket was standing at the microphone reading a slip of paper. Haymitch Abernathy was sprawled on a chair with a bottle in his hand. The Mayor was sitting down and looking at his toes. And all around were the backs of little boys' heads. Even looking at it, she could feel her heart race in anticipation and dread.

She flipped back to the picture of her with her father. It was amazing. She didn't have many photos of her father at home. He'd been gone for so long now that Katniss couldn't always recall his features with as much clarity as she could right after he'd died. Yet somehow, Peeta had captured Mr. Everdeen perfectly.

"You should keep that one," Peeta mumbled, sleepily. Katniss looked at him. She wondered how long he'd been awake, watching her.

"I'd love to, actually, but-"

"But you don't want to owe me," Peeta said flatly.

Katniss bit her lip and shook her head a little. Staring at the sketch, she could almost hear her father's voice again. She blinked back tears. "No," she replied. "No, it's not that. I'd willingly go into debt for this. I just don't know what seeing it would do to my mother.I really can't afford for her to check out on us again._" _

Katniss closed the sketchbook and put it back into Peeta's satchel. "Did you still want to look at the arrows?"

"I do. But I need a hand getting up first. I have to respond to, uh, nature's call."

Katniss took back the water skin and helped Peeta to his feet. He staggered a short ways off, then returned a couple of minutes later. She helped him walk back to the boulder, so he could lean against it again. She pulled out the arrows, and laid them out on top of the boulder. A couple of them needed new fletching, so she took out her knife and some of the turkey feathers she'd saved from yesterday.

He watched her for a minute or two as she removed the older feathers and started to trim and shape the new ones. Then he turned his attention to the rest of them. After a few minutes of looking at them from all angles, he began to draw in the second sketchbook.

As Peeta drew, he asked Katniss questions.

"What kind of feathers are you using?"

She pointed each one out. "These new ones here are wild turkey. That one you're holding is mockingjay. These two there," she indicated the arrows she was referring to, "are also mockingjay. The rest are grouse."

"Where do the metal tips come from?"

"The points? One of the traders in the hob uses a mold that my grandfather made a long time ago. You have to provide the metal, though. It doesn't take much, but decent metal is hard to find and its expensive. Mostly, I carve new shafts and keep re-using the points. I once found a bayonet. It was enough for four new points. Those arrows are in a different part of the woods, with the bow I usually use."

"When did you find a bayonet?"

"About two years ago? I'd shot a rabid dog, which nobody will buy, not even the tanner. Gale and I dug a pit to bury it in, and we found the bayonet while we were digging. I remember my father saying that there must have been a battle near here a long time ago, before the Dark Days, because he would sometimes find things like that."

"How many bows do you have?"

"Four. All made by my father or his father."

He was working fast, making rough sketches but they were still remarkable for all they lacked detail. When he was done, he handed the arrows back to her. Then he pointed to the game bag. "Did you hunt? Your bag was empty when I fell asleep."

"No," Katniss smiled. She pulled out the katniss tubers. "I found myself."

Peeta held his hand out and she gave him a couple. He flipped over a new page and sketched the tubers, as well as the flowers attached to the stem. "What do they taste like?" he asked.

"Bitter if they're raw, but once you bake or boil them, kind of like potatoes. Mrs. Hawthorne calls them 'duck potatoes.'"

She looked at him again as he sketched. He was just as pale as he had been earlier and even though it wasn't hot out, he was sweating. "Peeta, we need to get you back to my mother."

He just nodded and closed his sketchbook. Katniss gathered up the rest of their things. Peeta pushed himself off from the boulder, swayed a little and closed his eyes. For a moment, Katniss was worried he'd pass out. She couldn't put her arm around his waist without hurting him, so she gripped his forearms. "Peeta, look at me," she ordered. He opened his eyes. She leaned close, looked him straight in the eye and said, "If you make me haul your carcass all the way back to the Seam, I will never, ever, let you kiss me."

He let out a burst of laughter, which was the reaction she had hoped for. "You do know how to motivate me, Katniss."

The return trip was slow. Peeta was clearly in a lot of pain and needed her for support most of the way back. He was visibly weaker and slower than he had been on the trip out. When she returned her bow and arrows to their hiding place, he asked for a rest to catch his breath. Same thing after they got through the fence. By the time they got through the brush and were back on the school-grounds, Peeta was a sickly gray. She thought maybe talking to him would help.

"You know, I don't think I ever said so, but your drawings are beautiful. I had no idea you were so talented. How long have you been drawing?"

"Since I was old enough to hold a pencil."

"You're really good, Peeta. Do you ever take any of the art classes at school? I've never seen any of your work if you have."

"No. I've wanted to but Marigold felt it reflected poorly on the Mellarks."

"Wow. That's just...wow."

"Well, I will next semester," he told her. "I meant what I said earlier. I'm done hiding."

"And I meant what I said earlier. You were never a coward."

They slowly worked their way through the Seam. Katniss had never been so happy to see her home in her life. As she helped Peeta up the steps to her house, she called out for Prim and her mother. Prim and Rosemary took one look at Peeta and started clearing off the table. As they got the table ready for Peeta's examination, Rosemary asked Peeta what happened.

So he told her. Under Rosemary's questioning, he revealed some details that Katniss had not heard yet, including the fact that he'd had blood in his urine for the last several hours. Rosemary sent Peeta into the privy with a small glass bowl. "Urinate in this," she ordered, "and leave it on the shelf."

While Peeta was gone, Rosemary scolded her oldest daughter. "Katniss, _why on earth_ did you take him with you this morning? If there is blood in his urine, he's in no shape for that sort of exertion. You should have brought him here immediately!"

Katniss felt tears in her eyes again. "I didn't know! If I had, I'd have brought him here!" She choked back a sob. She sure was crying a lot today.

Peeta staggered back into the kitchen and said, "Don't be angry at Katniss, Mrs. Everdeen. She actually urged me to come here more than once, but I insisted we go." Katniss couldn't believe he was trying to protect her. She felt horribly guilty.

Rosemary looked annoyed with both of them. Shaking her head, she ordered Peeta to strip down to his shorts and to sit on the table, while she went to inspect his urine specimen.

Katniss knelt down to untie Peeta's shoes and he kicked them off. She and Prim helped him stand back up so he could get his pants off. He started to unbutton his fly but then looked at Katniss, a little smile on his face, and quipped, "This is your cue to run screaming from the house." Prim snorted.

"Shut up, you two" Katniss mumbled. Secretly, she was glad to hear him joke around a little.

They got his pants off. His right knee was swollen and bruised. Katniss and Prim helped Peeta hoist himself onto the table. He grunted with the effort and had to rest against Katniss once he was settled. Then she and Prim helped him take off his shirt. The bruising was so deep and dark it almost looked black. It looked worse than it had a couple of hours earlier. Katniss felt her eyes well up with tears again.

"Peeta, I'm so sorry," she sniffled. "If I'd known how bad it was, I really would have brought you straight here."

"I know. That's why I didn't tell you."

Rosemary returned. Katniss could see from the look on her mother's face that she was in her healer-mode. Rosemary looked at Peeta's back, not touching it. She then announced, "Peeta, I'm sending Katniss to the bakery to get your father and bring him back here."

"Good," said Katniss. "I'm going to have a word with your parents while I'm there."

"No, you won't," said Rosemary. "I could send Prim, but I need her help. If you don't promise to mind your manners, I'll send Prim anyway. Then Peeta will have to wait for her to return before he can get comfortable."

Peeta was still leaning against Katniss for support. She looked at him to see if he had any opinion, but his eyes were closed and his face was pale. Prim came up and said, "It's all right, Katniss, I've got him."

Katniss nodded and let Prim take her place.

She stalked out of the house and ran to town. When Katniss got to the bakery, she knocked on the back door. After a few moments, Rye answered it. "Everdeen! What are you doing here? Isn't Peeta with you?"

"He's with my mother. She's treating him for his injuries and asked me to come get your father."

Katniss crossed her arms across her chest and did everything she could not to either cry or start raging at Rye. This wasn't Rye's fault.

Rye opened the door a little further for her and said, "Wait here, I'll go get my dad." He went up a staircase that Katniss assumed led to their living quarters.

Katniss looked around the spotless kitchen and silently hoped Mrs. Mellark would wander in and give Katniss a reason to break her promise to her mother. Instead, after a minute, Rye and Mr. Mellark came downstairs. They both grabbed their jackets and followed Katniss out the door.

"What happened to Peeta?" demanded Mr. Mellark.

"You know what happened. You were there," hissed Katniss. "Peeta's at my house, peeing buckets of blood, and he's in so much pain that he couldn't take off his shirt without me and Prim helping him."

They walked in silence for a few more minutes, then Mr. Mellark confessed, "He blames me for it, you know."

"Dad, you've never stopped her," said Rye.

"She never hit you boys when I was there. She always waited until I was gone!" Katniss couldn't stand how whiny Mr. Mellark sounded.

"Dad. You never stopped her. You stayed. You let her stay. You kept your mouth shut. You let it happen. We paid the price."

Mr. Mellark didn't say anything else after that. When they got back to the Everdeen home, Katniss was hit with the smell of turkey broth and medicinal herbs. Prim stood at the stove stirring something in a pot. Rosemary was grinding something in a mortar and pestle. Katniss glanced in the pot. The turkey giblets and some of the bones from last night's turkey were in the pot, along with some vegetables.

Peeta was lying on his stomach on the table, a sheet covering him from the waist down. Most of Peeta's back was covered in bruises. Peeta 's eyes were closed but he opened them when they walked in. His father patted his head. Peeta said, "Don't." His voice was cold, angry. Mr. Mellark dropped his hand and looked hurt, but didn't say anything.

Katniss walked up to Peeta, intending to give his hand a quick, reassuring squeeze, but Peeta held on, so she stood there holding his hand while her mother explained just exactly how much damage Marigold Mellark had done. Peeta looked like he had fallen asleep again.

"Well, the good news is none of his ribs are fully broken, although some of them are probably cracked. The bad news is that the blow to his lower back probably caused one of his lower ribs to bruise or maybe even puncture his kidney. All that walking around this morning made it worse. He needs rest and fluids, lots of both."

Rosemary kept talking to Farl in her clinical voice. Farl, Katniss noticed, couldn't look her mother in the eyes.

The adults decided that Peeta would stay there for the next two days. Mrs. Everdeen intended to keep Peeta sedated and on an all-liquid diet while she monitored his progress. If the blood levels in his urine decreased, he could go home and return to school, although he wouldn't be wrestling for a few weeks.

If the blood levels increased, well, "there aren't a lot of options available to us in this District." Katniss knew from experience that was her mother's way of saying that only the Capitol had the advanced medical treatment that would be needed to heal Peeta.

Katniss leaned over to Peeta and told him, "I'll be right back, I need to talk to Rye." Peeta nodded and gave her had a squeeze before letting it go.

Katniss pulled Rye outside. "I'm not rehearsing until Peeta's well enough to walk me home."

Rye had that thousand-yard-stare on his face, like he'd had on that first day when he and Peeta had joined Katniss and Madge at lunch. Was that really only last week?

Rye finally spoke. "I'll tell the guys and Madge we're not rehearsing at all tonight. I'll ask your mother if I can come by after dinner and just work with you. You need to work on those songs you don't like, anyway."

Katniss knew that Rye wasn't really worried about rehearsing. He was just looking for a way to keep an eye on his little brother.

Rye studied her for a minute. "He told you? About how he feels?"

Katniss nodded.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"How do you feel about him?"

Katniss got kind of defensive. This was really none of Rye's business. "I don't know, Rye, OK? I've known for three whole hours, two of which I've spent dealing with his injuries! I really haven't had time to process it!"

Rye put his hands up, "OK, Everdeen, fair enough. I'm just looking out for my kid brother."

"Well, _somebody_ needs to," she retorted. She didn't actually blame Rye for Peeta's injuries, but this conversation was making her mad.

Rye leaned against the railing of her porch and pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. For a moment, he looked so much like Peeta that her heart lurched. Then he scrubbed his face and crossed his arms across his chest. "If I'd known she was gonna ambush him like that, I would've never left the kitchen. When I got home, she bitched at me about the time. I blew her off and went to bed. I figured Peeta was in for a lecture, not a beating." He shook his head. "The older she gets, the meaner she becomes. When she finds out where he is..."

Katniss hadn't thought about that. The thought of an injured Peeta at the mercy of his bitter, jealous mother sent chills down her spine, but then she remembered what Peeta had told her, about how he had scared Rye.

"Peeta was beating himself up this morning for scaring you last night. I think that upset him a lot more than anything else," she informed him. "Were you scared?"

"I was. I've never seen him like that. Marigold said the wrong thing last night and it just...set him off. She didn't even say those things to upset Peeta, she was just trying to get a rise out of Dad."

Rye kicked the dirt and watched as a small cloud of coal dust settled on his shoes. "If he'd actually killed her, the whole District would have thrown him a fucking party. But Peeta would never forgive himself. He'd spend the rest of his life convinced that every awful, horrible thing that ever came out of that hag's mouth was true."

"What did she say, anyway? I mean, what set him off?"

"Everything that you were worried about people saying when I asked you to be our singer. Marigold just included your mother in the mix, too, because she was aiming for Dad."

Katniss felt sick to her stomach. She sat down on the porch steps and put her head on her knees. Rye sat down next to her.

"You know, Everdeen, when you told me that people were going to think the worst of you for joining the band, I thought you were overreacting. And you weren't. I'm really sorry about that. I don't want you to quit this band, but I sure won't blame you if you do."

Katniss thought about it. She didn't want to quit. That would be like a win for Marigold Mellark. Besides, she needed the money. Then she thought about Peeta.

"Would it be safer for Peeta at home if I quit?

"Our home has never been safe. So, no."

The more Katniss heard about the Mellark home, the sadder she became. She tried to imagine how she would feel if some kind of temporary insanity made her want to kill her own mother, or Prim. It was so foreign to her that she couldn't even contemplate it.

"Then I'm not quitting."

"Thanks, Katniss," Rye said. He stood up and gestured towards the house. "C'mon. Let's go ask your mom if we can serenade Peeta to sleep tonight." Katniss got up and followed him into the house.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: Thank you everybody for all of the continued support, faves, follows and reviews. I just have to tell you that getting an email telling me there's a new follower, favor or review of the story is seriously better than Christmas.**

**Shout Out to english5672 for inspiring the song list. I lifted a lot of it from her awesome Gadge one-shot "I Think I Wanna Marry You."**

**Thanks, as always, to my MightyBeta team, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar.**

**Chapter 21—recovery**

After Katniss left to get Mr. Mellark, Mrs. Everdeen started working on Peeta, who was still leaning on Prim. Mrs. Everdeen was not the quiet, distracted woman he'd met just a couple of nights before. Instead, she was focused and business-like. She began by examining his knee. It didn't take long for her to conclude, like he had earlier, that he had given himself a bad bruise but nothing else.

His back, however...

Mrs. Everdeen and Prim helped Peeta lie on his stomach. "I need to determine whether any ribs have broken off. That means I have to touch your back. It won't be pleasant and I apologize for that," Mrs. Everdeen explained.

She poked and prodded. It felt like he was being stabbed with dull knives. Prim held his hand tightly. "Breathe, Peeta," she encouraged him. "I know it hurts, but breathe."

When Mrs. Everdeen pressed over the bruise on his lower back, it seemed like a good time to pass out for a few minutes. When he came to, Prim and Mrs. Everdeen were talking about things like "renal injury" and "fluid output." Prim was no longer holding his hand but she was resting one small hand on his head.

Mrs. Everdeen walked out of the room. Prim stepped back from the table and bent over at the waist so that she could look Peeta in the eye. Peeta tried not to smile at the look on her face. When Katniss scowled, it was fierce and sexy. When Prim scowled, it was the cutest thing he'd ever fucking seen.

"Peeta, you should have listened to Katniss! Why didn't you come here?"

Peeta tried to shrug but found he couldn't. "I needed to talk to her before I lost my nerve," he admitted.

This reason did not impress Primrose Everdeen. "Well, you're an idiot. You've made whatever damage your mother inflicted much worse. You're probably not leaving here for a few days. And Katniss blames herself."

"This isn't her fault. She wanted to bring me here right away, but I insisted we go," he protested.

"I know, but Katniss always feels responsible when the people she cares about are hurting."

_Well, great, _he thought. He finally grows a pair and tells her how he feels. How did he follow that up? He treated her like a heel by jumping to the wrong conclusion when she refused his drawing. Then he was so weak that she had to basically carry him to her mother for treatment. Now she blamed herself for the injuries his mother inflicted, and that Peeta himself exacerbated.

Mrs. Everdeen walked back in and asked Prim for help. They placed a sheet over the lower half of Peeta's body. Peeta could hear them working at the sink and the stove behind him. Mrs. Everdeen started talking. "Peeta, your kidney is bleeding, which means it's been damaged in some way. Hopefully, it's just a bruise and you'll be OK in a couple of days. If it's a puncture or laceration, that is much more serious and honestly, we can't do much, absent a trip to the Capitol." Because going to the Capitol required an invitation, that was as good as a death sentence. Or at least a sentence to a long, lingering, painful illness.

"I'm putting you on a liquid diet for the next day or so," Mrs. Everdeen continued. "You need a lot of fluids to keep your kidneys flushed out. With your father's permission, I'll keep you sedated on sleep syrup for day or two. It will restrict your movement and allow your kidney to heal up. All that walking around you did this morning irritated your kidney and likely caused more bleeding."

Mrs. Everdeen and Prim kept working. Peeta smelled something herbal, almost medicinal. Peeta dozed, never unaware of the pain he was in. He had almost completely fallen asleep when Rye, Katniss and his father walked in.

One look at Katniss' face told Peeta that Prim was right. Katniss blamed herself. This made him even angrier at his father, so when Farl placed his hand on Peeta's head, he snapped, "Don't." Farl didn't deserve to make himself feel better by offering comfort to Peeta.

Katniss, on the other hand, had nothing to be sorry for and he wanted her to know that. When she squeezed his hand, he kept holding on. If they hadn't been surrounded by people, he would have kissed it. Peeta drifted off again for awhile, then Katniss told him she needed to speak with Rye. He missed the warmth of her hand when she left. At some point, Mrs. Everdeen woke him up and said they were moving him to a cot. Rye and Katniss helped him sit up, and Mrs. Everdeen handed him a cup of what looked like tea. It tasted horrible, but he drank the whole thing without complaint. Prim informed him it was yarrow tea, and would help with the bleeding.

Rye and Katniss helped Peeta walk to a medical cot which had been set up perpendicular to the sofa, so that they formed an "L." Mrs. Everdeen gave him a dose of sleep syrup and told him he'd probably sleep until supper.

Katniss and Rye helped him settle on his side. Rye and Katniss shared a look, then Rye left the room. Katniss tucked a blanket around Peeta's legs and his front, leaving his back untouched. She brushed the hair off of his face.

He glanced up at her. She had tears in her eyes. He felt like kicking himself. All he'd ever wanted was to cherish her and let her know how wonderful she was. Instead, he'd made her feel bad about things that weren't her fault and she'd spent most of her morning crying. "Please don't cry, Katniss. Not your fault," he mumbled. But before he could say anything else, he felt the pull of the syrup and surrendered to sleep.

When Peeta woke up, he saw Rye sitting on the Everdeen's sofa, tuning his guitar. Prim sat on the floor facing Rye, discussing the band's songlist with him. It was night, and the room was softly lit with candles. Peeta watched Prim and Rye for a few moments before attempting to speak. Rye had a gentle look on his face that Peeta rarely saw. Prim seemed to bring out the best in everybody.

Peeta was about to say something when Katniss walked in. She looked at him, and called over her shoulder to tell her mother that Peeta was awake.

Rye put down his guitar and came over to Peeta. "I'm under orders from Mrs. Everdeen to get you to the bathroom, and help you pee into a bowl," Rye said. "So, lucky me. Let's go."

Rye helped him to the bathroom, then let out a string of very quiet and extremely profane curses when he saw how much blood was in Peeta's urine. He handed Peeta a change of shorts and a pair of sweatpants. He'd also brought a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a stick of deodorant. "I went back home and got you a couple of changes of clothes. You can wear a shirt if you want, but Mrs. E. says it'll be easier if you don't have to keep taking it on and off. And I figured you'd like to smell decent as long as you're here."

"Can't hurt. I don't imagine I've left all that great an impression on Katniss today."

"Oh, I don't know," Rye mused as Peeta brushed his teeth. "She sure tucked you in a lot while you slept, ran her fingers through your hair when she thought nobody was paying attention. She kept looking at you like she wanted to pick you up and cuddle you."

"That's just guilt. She blames herself for this," Peeta confided as he spat toothpaste into the sink. "I thought Prim was going to slap me earlier today for making Katniss feel bad." He managed to get a couple of swipes of deodorant under each arm. He wasn't daisy-fresh or anything, but at least he didn't smell like a corpse.

After Peeta washed his hands, he and Rye came out to find all three Everdeen women in the kitchen. Mrs. Everdeen ordered Peeta to sit at the table, where a large mug of steaming broth and a glass of water were waiting for him. "We've all had our dinner, but that's for you. Drink all of it, please," she said, before walking into the bathroom.

Peeta looked a little forlornly at the broth. He was in a _lot_ of pain and only wanted to lie down again. Katniss must have seen the look on his face, because she said, "Just drink it up and get it over with. Gag it down if you have to. Otherwise, you'll be sitting here all night."

Katniss, Rye and Prim sat with him and made small talk while he drank his turkey broth and water. He learned that Rye had stayed for dinner, which was turkey, dandelion salad and mashed katniss.

If he'd been feeling better, he would have been jealous of Rye. He'd only had turkey once or twice in his life.

Still, the broth was actually delicious. "It's a shame neither of us hunts," he told Rye. "Turkey broth would improve stale bread quite a bit." The girls look confused, so Rye explained that for the most part, they only ate the baked goods that were too stale to sell.

Mrs. Everdeen came back in and told Peeta that the bleeding had not improved yet but that she didn't expect to see results until tomorrow. He was ordered back to the cot. "Be as still as you can for another hour or so before I give you a dose of syrup for the night. Don't forget to empty your bladder first." Mrs. Everdeen continued to explain which of his bodily functions she was concerned about. Peeta didn't consider himself squeamish, but Rosemary's clinical detachment was a little off-putting.

Katniss waived away Rye's offer to help Peeta back onto the cot. She rolled one of the extra blankets up to support Peeta's back. She sat down on the floor and leaned her back against the cot, about even with his stomach. He placed his hand on her shoulder and caressed it with his thumb. She didn't seem to mind. "Rye needs to teach me some new songs," she explained to Peeta, "so we're going to have kind of a mini-rehearsal here. Hope that's alright."

Prim sat at one end of the sofa and Rye sat at the other. For the next hour, Rye and Katniss worked on songs. Every few minutes, Mrs. Everdeen would stand in the doorway for a moment, one hand on the doorjamb, head down, eyes closed, listening to Katniss sing. Then she'd step back into the kitchen. Peeta knew that Mrs. Everdeen had all but abandoned her daughters a few years ago, but he still wondered what it would be like to live with a mother who could just stop and enjoy her child's talent instead of tearing it down every opportunity she had.

Rye worked on a few songs that Katniss already knew, but had her learn a few new ones, too. Apparently, Rye was looking for Katniss to add more love songs to her repertoire, because he taught her "A Thousand Years", "Barefoot", "Come Away With Me" and "The Air that I Breathe." Rye asked her to make a few changes here and there, but for the most part, Rye seemed happy with Katniss' musical instincts.

Peeta knew he would never tire of hearing her voice. For a girl who struggled to express herself with words, she had an uncanny way of making a song speak directly to the listener. He wondered if she was even aware of how much emotion she put into her singing.

But as much as Peeta didn't want to miss a single moment of her singing, exhaustion and pain kept dragging him into a weird half-sleep. He wasn't asleep enough to escape the pain, but he wasn't awake enough to enjoy being with Katniss. Once, he awoke to find that he had pulled the end of her braid up onto the cot and tangled his fingers into it. Katniss hadn't complained, or taken it out of his hand, or even woken him up. Instead, she'd just removed the elastic on the end of her braid so it would have a little more give.

After an hour or so, Mrs. Everdeen made him get up and use the restroom. Then Rye said he needed to leave. He told Peeta he would stop by tomorrow, and asked whether he needed anything.

Peeta did. "Tell Bannock I need to speak with him."

"Bannock? Why the hell do you want to talk to Bannock?" Rye and Bannock didn't get along well.

"To see if I can live with him and Nikki," explained Peeta. Rye said he'd deliver the message on his way home tonight, and left.

Mrs. Everdeen gave Peeta his sleep syrup, then went to bed. Prim also told Peeta goodnight and practically sprinted from the room. Katniss walked around the living room, blowing out candles. Her braid had come completely undone and her black hair hung in silky waves over her shoulders and down her back. Peeta couldn't help but stare at her.

When there was only one candle left burning, Katniss knelt next to his cot and gently tucked him in. She ran her fingers through his hair, brushing his bangs from his face like she had earlier. He could still see guilt on her face, so he took her other hand and kissed her knuckles. Before she could do anything more than gasp a little, he said, "Stop blaming yourself."

Katniss sighed, "She was angry with me and my mother. I hate that she took it out on you."

"Katniss, if she was angry with my father, she took it out on us. If she was angry with a customer, she took it out on us. If she was in a bad mood, she took it out on us. It's always been like this. The only differences between this beating and all the others are that I finally stood up to her, and I'm here instead of Bay's apothecary. You are not at fault for any of this."

"Neither are you, Peeta." She stopped stroking his bangs and let her hand rest on his jaw and cheek.

He was looking at her face when she said this. All those years of reading her emotions finally paid off now that he had the context to put them in. The little crease in between her eyebrows said she was worried about him. The bottom lip caught in her teeth showed that she was holding onto lingering guilt. The tension in her shoulders and neck proved that she was angry at his parents. And the tenderness in her eyes meant that she cared about him. She cared.

He'd have given anything right then to have had the ability to sit up and pull her into a kiss. He settled for kissing her hand one more time.

"Mom gave you enough sleep syrup to get you through the night but if anything goes wrong, or if you need help, Prim and I are just one room over. Call out and one of us will come right out, OK?"

Peeta nodded and whispered his thanks. Katniss stayed there, humming softly until he fell asleep. And even though he was exhausted and in deep pain, for the first time in his life, Peeta felt genuinely and honestly loved.

**Chapter songlist**

"**A Thousand Years" © 2011 Christina Perri **

"**Barefoot" © 1991 k.d. lang, Bob Telson**

"**Come Away With Me" © 2002 Norah Jones **

"**The Air that I Breathe." © 1972 Albert Hammond, Mike Hazlewood **


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: Hello, everybody! The faves, follows and reviews have really been amazing. I am trying to respond to all of your reviews. I know I still have a few out there, but if I end up missing yours, I promise it isn't on purpose. I'm just up to my eyeballs in RL responsibilities at the mo. Speaking of which, the next two weeks (May 19-June 1) will likely see a slowdown (but hopefully, not a stop) in postings. Once my schedule gets back to normal, postings should be back to twice a week.**

**Other developments—I'm working on a "Five to Twelve" songlist over on spotify. It's still a WIP, but if you're interested, come find me there. I'm under the name GraphiteGirl, natch. **

**As always, thanks to my betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar. **

**Chapter 22-sundries**

Katniss watched Peeta sleep for a few moments, then picked up the last candle and walked into the bedroom she shared with Prim. "How is he?" Prim whispered.

"Sleeping," Katniss replied. She sat down on the bed. Prim, who was already in her nightgown, pulled her knees up to her chin to make room for her sister. Katniss glanced down at Prim's feet and saw that Prim had blisters on her heels and the tops of her toes.

"What happened to your feet, Prim?"

Prim sighed. "My shoes are getting too small."

"Since when? Why didn't you tell me, Prim?"

"I don't know, the last few weeks, maybe? And I didn't want to tell you because I was hoping I could make these last to the end of school, and then I'll just go barefoot over the summer."

"You'll do no such thing! You spend your entire summer following Mom from sickbed to sickbed. She won't let you do that in bare feet. We'll get you new shoes. What about your dresses?"

Prim looked at the floor, clearly upset. "They'll probably last to the end of school, but they're getting a little too short."

"Prim, this is a _good_ thing! It means you're growing like you should." The very fact that they lived in District Twelve meant that Prim had gone hungry far too often, but Katniss had worked hard over the years to make sure that Prim had enough to eat. This often meant that Katniss would give Prim slightly larger helpings, or would skip her own meals in favor of the food going to Prim. Her sacrifices were beginning to pay off. Prim was much taller at the age of 12 than Katniss had been at 14.

Prim's lower lip started to tremble. "I'm not blind, Katniss," she sniffled. "I know that every time I've needed new clothes and shoes, you've taken out tesserae."

"Well, that's my own fault. If I dressed and behaved like a regular girl, you'd have a whole closet of hand-me-downs." Like most of the girls in the District, Prim wore dresses. Katniss never had, and she often wore out her clothing before she outgrew them. Usually, she sold her old clothes as scrap cloth to Ripper's sister, who used it to make braided rugs she traded in the Hob.

Katniss changed into her nightgown and brushed her hair and teeth, silently calculating the cost of shoes and clothes. She could get used dresses for Prim at the Hob, but they were going to have to visit the shoemaker for Prim's shoes.

She also took a mental tally of the other things they likely needed—medical supplies for her mother, tea, salt, tallow...as the list grew, Katniss' heart sank a little. Prim was right. She was going to have to take out another tesserae.

Because her birthday fell on the 8th of May, Katniss could sign for tesserae on the 8th of every month. April 8th was the day after tomorrow. She would then have at least eighteen slips in the Reaping bowl. Katniss hoped that the band would start getting jobs to play soon. She'd taken out tesserae every single birthday since she'd turned twelve. It would be nice if she didn't have to this year.

She climbed into bed with Prim and they blew out their candles. "Prim, do you think Peeta's going to be OK?" Katniss worried.

"Probably. Mom seems to think so, anyway. If she really thought he was going to die, she would have sent him home." Then she snuggled up close to Katniss and said, "What happened this morning with Peeta?"

"I took him to the woods, but he was in such bad shape that I brought him back here."

"I don't mean _that_, Katniss. I mean, you've never held hands or run your fingers through the hair of any of Mom's patients before." Katniss detected a slightly superior tone in Prim's voice.

Katniss took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. "He said he's cared about me for a long time."

"Told ya. So what did you say?"

"Mostly, I just cried."

"A cute boy tells you he likes you, and you cry?"

"I wasn't crying because he said he liked me, I was crying because of his drawing."

"What drawing?"

So, in her stumbling way, Katniss told Prim what she and Peeta had talked about that morning. This required Katniss to explain about the burned bread, and the beating, and how Katniss felt like she owed their lives to Peeta.

The sisters had rolled over onto their sides, facing each other, as Katniss told her story. When she finished with, "and now I'm really confused about the whole thing," Prim tapped her chin for a moment.

"I understand how you feel about not wanting to owe people," of course Prim understood, she was Seam, "but I agree with Peeta on this one. You've more than repaid back your debt to him. Besides, now _we're_ taking care of _him_ so it all comes full circle."

"I hadn't thought about it like that," Katniss said. "But still, he took a beating—on purpose—because of me."

"No. He took a beating because his mother's an unholy witch," Prim argued. "That's all on her, Katniss. Not you."

"Well," Katniss hesitated, "I still feel responsible, though."

Prim rolled her eyes. "Of course, you do. Anyway, enough about his mother. How do you feel about Peeta?"

Katniss thought about it for a moment. She realized she'd been asking herself the same question all day. For a few days, really, but her thoughts jumbled up when it came to Peeta. "I'm not sure. It was a little disturbing to hear him say he'd been watching me for all these years."

"You've been watching him, too, Katniss. I told you yesterday, I've seen it myself. Now I just know why."

"Oh. That's true." She _had_ been keeping an eye on the boy with the bread over the years.

"Was he a creep or anything this morning?" Prim interrupted Katniss' thoughts.

"No, he wasn't. He was very considerate, actually. He was in a lot of pain, but he mostly worried about me." Katniss did _not_ tell Prim that Peeta had spent so much time holding her, nor did she mention how safe she had felt in his arms. "I asked him if we were friends now, and he said we were whatever I wanted us to be."

"What do you want you two to be?"

"Just friends."

"Do you want to kiss him?" Prim asked.

"No. I'm not ready for that yet." If nothing else, Katniss was sure about that.

"Do you want other girls to kiss him?"

"What other girls?" Katniss snapped.

Prim giggled, "_Any_ other girls, Katniss. If you really want to be 'just friends,' it shouldn't bother you if he sees other people. So—do you want other girls to kiss him?"

Katniss scowled at her little sister.

Prim gave her a satisfied little smile and said, "Imagine Delly Cartwright running her fingers through Peeta's hair like you were doing earlier."

Katniss did not like this image _at all_. She put her hand over her eyes and groaned. "All right, all right. I like him. That doesn't mean he should like me back. He deserves somebody nicer than me."

Prim thought about that for a moment, before answering, "No, I don't see that. Peeta doesn't want nice. His dad's nice, and look at the shape Peeta is in."

"Mr. Mellark isn't nice, he's weak," Katniss argued. "Besides, Peeta's popular. What's he going to do, quit his circle of friends just to be with me?"

"Probably," Prim replied, but Katniss plowed on.

"You should see his drawings, Prim. They are so amazing. He had one of me and Daddy. He offered it to me, but I don't know how Mom would take it if she saw it. Honestly, a lot of what he said today still doesn't make any sense to me," she admitted. "He thinks he's been a coward all these years."

"Well," Prim let out a huge yawn, "people usually don't see themselves for who they really are, Katniss." She closed her eyes, curled up against her sister, and fell asleep.

Katniss snuggled Prim and pulled the extra blanket around them, grateful for its' warmth. The long day finally caught up with her. She pushed all of her questions about Peeta Mellark out of her head, and was asleep within minutes.

Katniss woke up before dawn with her bladder complaining. She lit a candle and walked to the bathroom. She glanced at Peeta as she passed him. He looked OK, but she would check on him when she was done.

After going to the bathroom and washing her hands, Katniss took extra care to brush the tangles out of her hair. She let it fall around her shoulders in thick, glossy waves. She left the bathroom, walked quietly over to Peeta's cot, and placed the candle on the end table. She tucked his blankets around him, even though she didn't really need to. She ran her fingers through his hair for good measure, even though she didn't really need to do that, either.

She hadn't meant to wake him, though, not really. His eyes blinked open and he stared at her in confusion. "I'm so sorry, Peeta, I didn't mean to wake you up. I was just checking on you" she said quietly.

He reached out with one hand and ran it through her hair. "You really here, Katniss?" he whispered. His eyes closed again.

"Yes, I'm really here. Do you need anything?"

"Kiss," he said. A sly smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. He was teasing her, even in his drug-addled state. But after a moment, his face relaxed back into sleep.

Katniss left him sleeping and put water on the stove for tea. She grabbed pen and paper, and went to the pantry to make a list of what they needed. Her mother came into the kitchen, hugged her and wished her good morning. Then she said, "I'm going to wake Peeta up and help him to the bathroom, so you should go get changed. It wouldn't do for Peeta to see you in that."

Katniss looked down at herself. "Why not?" she asked. Her flannel nightshirt came to just above her ankles, and was extremely modest.

"Because it isn't proper for a young man to see a girl in her nightclothes."

_Too late,_ thought Katniss, but she didn't argue. Instead, she took her candle back into her room and got quietly dressed. She woke up Prim, then headed back into the kitchen. Peeta was sitting on their table again, and Rosemary was pressing into his back with her fingertips. Peeta's eyes were closed and his lips were pressed together in a thin, white line. He swayed just a little. "Don't pass out on me, Peeta. Katniss, make sure Peeta doesn't fall, please," Rosemary ordered.

Katniss stood in front of Peeta and let him lean into her. He rested his head on her shoulder, and she could see that much of his back had turned black and blue. "How are you feeling?" she asked him.

"Peachy," he mumbled into her neck.

Rosemary completed her examination and said, "I think I can safely say that your kidney is bruised, not punctured or cut. There's much less blood in your urine today than there was yesterday, but there's still more than I'd like to see before you're up and about. Let's get some more fluids into you."

Katniss helped him off the table. Her hand slid across his chest, making her hyper-aware of the fact that he wasn't wearing a shirt. She felt herself blush, and was grateful that her mother's back was turned.

Peeta sat down carefully at the table just as Prim walked in, dressed for school. She looked at Peeta's back and went into her own version of "healer mode." She peppered him with questions and inspected all of his injuries. Katniss and Rosemary shared a small smile with each other; Prim took healing very seriously.

Katniss prepared broth for Peeta and more water for tea. Rye arrived with fresh bread and muffins. Katniss supposed this was partial payment to her mother for treating Peeta. She was glad to see it. Her mom never turned away a patient, but many of them simply could not afford to pay her.

Prim squealed and hugged Rye around the waist just like she had with Peeta when he gave her cookies. Rye looked delighted and hugged her back. Peeta was smiling broadly at the scene and Katniss was once again struck with the idea that these boys received little to no affection at home.

Katniss gave Peeta his broth, then packed lunch for herself and Prim while everybody else ate breakfast. Rye hung out in the kitchen. After a few minutes of small talk, he addressed Peeta. "So, I talked to Bannock last night and told him you needed to talk to him."

"And?" Peeta was trying to keep his expression neutral but Katniss could see the anxiety in his eyes.

"And he whined like a two year old about coming into the Seam, but Nikki told him if he didn't come talk to you, she would, and I quote, 'waddle mah fat ay-ass out there and give birth to _yer_ baby while I talk ta _yer_ little brother.' So he's coming with me tonight." Rye imitated a very thick southern drawl when he imitated his sister-in-law.

The addition of two almost-grown men made the small kitchen feel a little crowded. Even with Peeta's injuries keeping him subdued, the boys were much noisier than the Everdeens were used to having. But Katniss found she didn't mind—it was almost cozy.

The arrival of Gale, Rory and Vick signaled it was time to leave. Katniss said goodbye to her mother and to Peeta. She was about to leave when she heard Peeta call out, "Katniss."

Katniss turned around to find that Peeta was holding out a muffin for her. "You didn't eat any breakfast. Take it with you."

Katniss looked at it longingly, but thought about shoes, dresses, tea and salt. "Thanks, but I'll be OK until lunch."

"I won't be if you don't eat. Take it," he pleaded.

Rosemary looked up from the stove. "Katniss, _eat_. We have plenty of food for a few days."

Katniss took the muffin and smiled at Peeta. "Thank you, Peeta." He looked happy. Pale and bruised, but happy.

Rye, Prim and the Hawthorne brothers were waiting for her outside. "Did Peeta kiss you goodbye?" Prim asked excitedly.

"Yeah, Prim, he stood up with all his injuries, and planted one on me right in front of _Mom_." Gale and Rye laughed, but Prim looked disappointed. "Of course he didn't kiss me, Prim. He just gave me breakfast, is all." Katniss indicated the muffin in her hand. She took a bite—cinnamon and apples. _Oh, I could get used to having a baker in the house, _Katniss thought. She all but inhaled the rest of the muffin.

Rory, Vick and Prim quickly broke off and walked ahead of the older teens. Rye, Gale and Katniss made small talk, all of them avoiding the topic of Peeta's injuries. As they got close to school, Gale said he'd meet Katniss in the woods after school for hunting. Rye told Katniss he'd see her after dinner. They all parted ways.

As she walked to class, Katniss found herself wishing she could walk back home and check on Peeta, but she knew he was in good hands with her mother. She got to her desk, sat down and tried very hard to quit thinking about the boy with the bread.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: I'm still in the middle of a very hectic couple of weeks, so updates will be slower than I would like for the next week or two. Thank you everybody for they faves, follows and reviews!**

**And thanks as always to dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar for their amazing beta work!**

**Chapter 23—living situations**

After Katniss, Prim and Rye left with the Hawthornes, Mrs. Everdeen said, "I could give you another dose of sleep syrup but I'd rather wait until tonight. Try to sleep. If you can't, let me know."

Getting back to the cot hurt, but Peeta felt a small sense of accomplishment that he did it without help. Mrs. Everdeen arranged the blankets around him. Peeta realized he'd been tucked in more in the last 24 hours than he had in his entire life. Mrs. Everdeen could be detached and distant, but there was no question that she was a capable healer and she was never unkind.

"Thank you for allowing me to stay here for a couple of days," Peeta told her. "The Bays usually just send us back home with willow bark tea and orders to stop giving our mother reasons to discipline us." Peeta belatedly remembered that the Bays were Mrs. Everdeen's parents, but she didn't look offended.

"Willow bark would make the bleeding worse," she replied. "And if you lived in a safer environment, I would have sent you home, too. But since you don't, well, here you are." She gave him a soft smile, then left the room.

Peeta tried to rest. Without the syrup to force him into sleep, he couldn't fully escape the pain. Instead, he napped on and off for most of the morning. Mrs. Everdeen woke him up for lunch, and made him drink more broth, tea and water. He felt stiff and it still hurt like hell to breathe, but the sharp, stabbing pain was beginning to fade.

Peeta couldn't sleep after lunch, so he pulled out his sketchbook and pencils and worked on his idea for the band's logo. He drew a clock that looked just like the clock on the Justice Building. He added a lightly sketched katniss flower on the face. For the hands of the clock, he drew arrows with wild turkey feathers for fletching. The hands were set at 11:55.

An hour of drawing tired him, so he rested again. He closed his eyes and thought about what he _really_ wanted to draw—Katniss, the way she had looked early that morning when she'd woken him up. He'd been half convinced he was still dreaming. He remembered how silky her hair felt between his fingers, how her nightgown was askew and had nearly slipped off of one shoulder.

Yeah. Probably best not to draw that picture with her mother nearby.

Peeta didn't realize he'd fallen asleep again until Katniss and Prim came home. They both sat down on the floor in front of his cot.

"How are you feeling?" Prim asked.

"Better," he replied.

"I brought you your homework," Katniss announced.

"Oh. You shouldn't have," he said flatly.

Katniss flashed him a smile. They updated him on what he'd missed at school for a few minutes, before Katniss stood up and announced she was "heading out." Peeta guessed that meant, "going hunting." Prim stood up with Katniss and hugged her tight. Katniss kissed the top of Prim's head, saying, "Prim, it's going to be all right. Don't worry." Prim let go of Katniss, but watched her leave.

"Are you all right?" he asked Prim.

Prim looked over at him. She was upset, that much was clear. It looked like she was debating if she was going to tell him what was on her mind. Finally, she said, "I'm all right, Peeta. Nothing you need to worry about."

"Prim, you're a terrible liar."

That got a smile out of her. "I know. Well, no. I'm not OK, I'm worried about Katniss. But it isn't my place to tell you why, and even if it was, Katniss doesn't want me to worry anyway. She sure wouldn't want _you_ to worry."

"Prim, I worry about Katniss all the time."

Somebody knocked on the front door and Prim went to answer it. Peeta heard children's voices urgently asking for Mrs. Everdeen. Mrs. Everdeen issued instruction to Prim for taking care of Peeta, then she left with the children.

Prim returned. "Mom had to go. One of the miners is in labor. This is her fourth child, so hopefully she won't labor too long. Mom wants you to eat some solid food tonight and she gave me your medication instructions if she doesn't return by bedtime."

"How long will she be gone?" Peeta wondered.

"Who knows?" Prim replied, as she sat back down on the floor in front of his cot. "It could be an hour, it could be all night. Babies have their own schedules, you know. By the way, I have a favor to ask."

"Anything."

"Can I see your drawings? Katniss raved about them last night, she said they were amazing."

"She did?" Peeta couldn't help but smile, which made Prim smile.

"Yes, she did. Do you mind?"

"No, but I should let you know that not all of them are pleasant," he warned her.

Prim rolled her eyes. "You sound like Katniss, wanting to protect me from all the ugliness in the world. Peeta, I'm training to be a healer in a _mining district_. I've set bones. I've helped my mother amputate burned limbs. I've watched people die right here in this house. I think I can handle some drawings."

Peeta decided right then that, after Katniss, Prim was his favorite person in the whole world. "You Everdeen girls are something else. Hand me my satchel."

She did, and he pulled out the sketchbook he had shown Katniss yesterday. Prim sat in front of his cot and looked at the sketches. Meanwhile, he took advantage of Mrs. Everdeen's absence to sketch Katniss from the morning, with her hair down and her face lit by candlelight.

He kept sketching until he heard a sniffle. He looked up and saw that Prim had tears running down her face. She was looking at the sketch of Katniss under the tree. Peeta closed his own sketchbook and held his hand out. Prim grabbed it. "I forgot," she said, wiping her eyes with her shoulder. "I'd forgotten how bad it was. You really did save us that day, Peeta. And Katniss has saved us every day since."

Prim let go of Peeta's hand, dried her eyes and continued to look through the sketchbook. Peeta went back to drawing. Eventually, Prim flipped back to the picture of her father and Katniss. She looked at it for a long time.

"I offered her that, but she turned me down," Peeta muttered, glancing up from his sketching. "And I'm sorry to say I got a little huffy about it until she explained why."

"She told me she was worried it would upset Mom," Prim mused, "and, honestly, it might. It's beautiful, though. Why were you huffy?"

Peeta frowned. "I assumed she wouldn't want to owe me. I know now that wasn't the case, but still," Peeta put his pencil down and looked at Prim, "how can I ever give her a gift, or do something nice for her if she sees strings attached to everything?"

Prim adamantly shook her head, "You don't give her any gifts, Peeta. Not yet. She'll take it the wrong way."

Peeta looked down at his drawing of Katniss that he had in his hands. Here was a girl who sacrificed so readily for others, yet refused to accept even the smallest gift for fear it would put her in debt somehow.

"I don't know what makes this harder," he confessed to Prim. "Wanting to take care of a girl who wouldn't accept the help if it were offered, or wanting to take care of her when I can't even take care of myself."

Prim got up and sat on the cot next to him, looking down at his sketch of Katniss. "You love her," she announced.

"Since I was five," Peeta quietly agreed.

"Well, let me tell you something about Katniss. Katniss tells herself that she doesn't love anybody, except maybe me." Peeta felt his heart begin to sink at this, but Prim wasn't finished. "She is _lying_ to herself, Peeta. Katniss loves lots of people. Me. Our mother. Gale and all the Hawthornes. Madge. Probably Rye and the rest of the band, by now. And absolutely you."

Peeta stared at Prim. She had just named the very thing he'd wanted and desired more than his own life. "Do you really think so?" He knew he sounded desperate, but he knew Prim wouldn't judge him for loving Katniss.

"Yes," she said, looking at him with sympathy.

"But?" he prompted.

"_But_ Katniss doesn't let anybody love her back, except for maybe me."

"Why not? Is it about owing people?"

"No. It's about losing people."

Peeta closed his eyes and thought about all the years he'd seen Katniss sitting by herself, never allowing anybody in, and how vulnerable she'd been with him in the woods, not bothering to hide her emotions, allowing him to hold her. "She let me hug her," he told Prim. "Is that letting me love her back?"

Prim opened her mouth in shock, then jumped to her feet. "Wait a second, Peeta Mellark! When did you hug Katniss?" she demanded, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Yesterday, in the woods. She was really upset when she saw that sketch of her under the tree, so I held her until she calmed down."

Prim looked pissed off_. _For a moment Peeta worried that she thought he'd gone too far. Then she blurted out, "I _can't believe_ she didn't tell me that!" _Oh, thank god_, he thought. _She's only pissed at Katniss_.

Prim tapped her mouth with her finger, then pointed it at him. "OK. Here's what you do. Don't give her things, because she'll see it as debt. Let her take care of you in her own way. Give lots of hugs. And be really patient with her, Peeta, because she thinks you shouldn't care for her."

Peeta wanted to ask Prim a hundred other questions, but the front door opened and Katniss walked in. Peeta closed the sketchbook before she could see the drawing he'd done of her. Prim informed Katniss where their mother was. Katniss nodded at this news and looked at Peeta. "You're sitting up? That's progress!" she exclaimed.

"Yes, my finest hour," Peeta remarked dryly.

Katniss said she would get dinner started, and Prim got up to help.

"How's the homework coming along?" Katniss inquired, one eyebrow raised.

"The importance of homework is overrated," Peeta replied. He was, at best, an indifferent student. Their teachers had all but admitted that the textbooks for History, Government and Social Studies were nothing more than Capitol propaganda. Nearly failing those classes gave Peeta a perverse sense of pride. He didn't mind Chemistry, Math or Geology, which taught actual facts. As a future baker or miner, he might learn something useful in those classes.

Still, nobody could ever accuse Peeta Mellark of overdoing it for grades.

Katniss looked pointedly at the short stack of books and papers she had brought back from school for him. Sighing in mock defeat, he picked up the homework assignments. He took them back to his cot and started with History. "What's the date?" he called out.

"April 7th," the sisters replied in unison. He put the date and his name on top of his paper, and proceeded to write an absolute shit essay on "The Early History of District Twelve."

After a bit, wonderful smells filled the little house. His stomach growled, and he realized this was the first time he'd been hungry in a couple of days. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, identifying by scent everything which was being cooked. This was something he could do in the bakery—identify what was in each oven just by the smell. He called out, "Turkey fried in oil, gravy, toasted sourdough from the bakery, some kind of greens, and that disgusting tea I've been drinking since I got here."

There was a moment of silence, then astonished laughter from the kitchen. "Very close, Mellark," Katniss said, coming to the doorway. "It's actually turkey _hash_, made with the last of the katniss, fried in oil. Come eat."

The portions were small but it was the best meal he'd had in years. He tried to help clean up but they both waved him off. He sat back down on the cot and did more homework.

Rye and Bannock showed up not long after. Rye made introductions, then Katniss took herself and Prim into the living room. The boys all sat around the kitchen table.

Peeta didn't waste any time trying to butter up his oldest brother. Bannock did not respond well to pleading, begging or anything that sounded like whining. "Did Rye tell you what happened?"

Bannock looked Peeta in the eyes. "He said you would have killed her if he hadn't been there."

"She nearly killed me, it seemed only fair." Peeta didn't like the tone of accusation in Bannock's voice. And he really didn't feel like explaining that what drove him over the edge wasn't the beating, it was the slur on Katniss.

"I want to know if you and Nikki would consider letting me live with you until I'm old enough to get my own place. I know you have a baby on the way, and I'll do everything I can to help out. I'll keep working at the bakery, and use my wages to contribute to your overhead."

Bannock crossed his arms across his chest and said, "Let me see your back."

Peeta stood up and turned around. Although his back was feeling a little better, it actually looked worse. The bruises had turned almost black, with edges of green and purple. Bannock looked at it and sighed, "Well, shit, Peet. What'll you do if we can't take you in?"

Peeta sat back down. His back was beginning to hurt again. "I'll come squat here in the Seam until Peacekeepers make me go back. As long as I keep attending school, I doubt they'll bother me."

Bannock stared at his youngest brother for a long time. Peeta returned his gaze, trying not to look desperate. Finally, Bannock spoke up, "You've seen our place, Peet. It's _small_. You'd be on the sofa. A baby is going to wake you up at night. There's no privacy."

"I know, Ban. I know this is putting you two out. I know you're newlyweds who don't want a teenager in the house, and you don't need another mouth to feed. But I'll be at the bakery before and after school and on Saturdays. Most nights, I'll be at rehearsals with Rye and walking Katniss home. Sundays, I'll make myself scarce if you want me to. Or I'll babysit if you and Nikki want to take some time for yourselves.

"But I'm not going back there, Ban. I'd rather take my chances in an abandoned shack here in the Seam."

Bannock looked at Rye and asked, "What about you? Are you going to stay?"

"Only until I have enough to leave," Rye said. "If the band does well, I'll get a flat, and Peet can come live with me. If it only does a little bit of business, I might be able to afford a room at the boarding house but Peeta can't live there until he's 18 anyway. But right now, I don't have the money for either."

Bannock blew a breath out from between his lips and said, "I don't know, Peet..."

Just then, Katniss walked into the kitchen. "Hate to interrupt, I'll be out of your way in a sec." She put water in the kettle and put the kettle on the stove. She put yarrow tea into a strainer, and put the strainer into a mug. As she left, she touched Peeta on the shoulder and said, "I'll be back when the water boils. You need another dose of yarrow. Hopefully, that will stop the bleeding for good." She gave his shoulder a motherly pat.

_Holy shit, she's trying to help_, Peeta thought. He kept his face serious and somber. "I appreciate that, Katniss. Thank you." She walked into her bedroom and closed the door.

Bannock was looking over Peeta, clearly confused. "What bleeding? I don't see any bleeding."

"His kidney's bleeding," Rye spat out. "Marigold hit him so hard that he's literally been pissing blood for two days. I saw it myself. It looked like a slaughter house."

Bannock wiped both of his hands down his face. First he looked at Rye, then he looked at Peeta. He put his hands back down on the table. "OK," he said. "I'll stop by the bakery on the way home and tell Dad you're moving in with us for a while. I'll tell him that he needs to start paying your salary to help us with overhead. When will you be out of here?"

"Tomorrow, most likely."

Just then, almost as if on cue, the kettle started to whistle. Katniss returned to the kitchen to fuss over the tea. She set a mug of the awful stuff in front of Peeta. He drank it gratefully. It was a small price to pay to get away from Marigold Mellark.

Bannock stood up and said, "Peet, just come over when you leave here. I'll assume its tomorrow. Send word if it won't be."

Peeta smiled at his brother, "Thanks, Ban. I'd hug you but I don't think my back could take it."

Bannock said his goodbyes and left.

Peeta turned to Katniss. "Thanks for the tea."

Katniss looked pleased with herself. "I thought he needed a little push."

Rye snorted, "Bannock was being a dick. I was over there today and Nikki _wants_ Peeta to come live with them. She _hates_ Marigold. She told Bannock she would have let you live there even before all this. But Bannock wants to fuck his new wife in private, so he was less keen on it."

Katniss turned bright red at this and disappeared into her room. Prim followed. Rye left to collect Mandor, who was rehearsing with them tonight and didn't know the way to the Everdeen's.

Peeta grabbed his satchel and went into the restroom and peed what felt like 10 gallons of brown urine. All of the fluids of the last day seemed to have finally made their way through his system. After washing his hands, he cleaned himself up. What he really needed was a bath, but fresh clothes and deodorant was better than nothing. He put on a shirt and walked back to his cot. He was getting tired again.

He could hear Prim and Katniss in their room, quietly arguing. He heard Katniss tell Prim, "Even if you didn't need anything, mom's list of medical supplies is about a mile long. No arguing, Prim. It'll be OK."

Just then there was frantic knocking at the front door. Katniss walked through the living room to get to it, avoiding Peeta's gaze. Prim followed her a moment later. She'd clearly been crying. Peeta raised his eyebrows at her as she walked by but she just shook her head.

Katniss opened the door to find the extremely upset, oldest child of the pregnant woman standing on their porch. The little boy—Peeta thought he couldn't have been any older than seven—rapidly explained that it was a breech delivery and labor had taken a turn for the worse. Mrs. Everdeen had sent for Prim.

Peeta noticed how instantly the sisters forgot their argument. Prim's tears vanished and she pulled the little boy inside. Prim comforted the child while Katniss quickly poured her a thermos of tea and handed Prim what looked like a small bag of medical supplies. The sisters hugged and Katniss said, "Be careful." Then Prim was gone.

Katniss walked into the living room and sat on the sofa. "Prim's hands are really small, but she's a lot stronger than she looks" she explained to Peeta. "She's able to turn the baby when nobody else can. Mom says that since Prim started helping, she hasn't lost a single breech birth."

"She's amazing," Peeta said sincerely.

"She is," Katniss agreed. There was a moment of awkward silence. Peeta decided to put his homework away, mostly to give himself something to do. He saw his homework poking out of the textbook, the date at the top of the page. Today was April 7th, which meant tomorrow was the 8th...

Tomorrow was the 8th. _Oh, shit._ No wonder Prim was upset. Katniss was taking out tesserae.

Before he knew what he was doing, Peeta launched himself off the cot, strode over to Katniss and pulled her up off the sofa and into him. He ignored both her squeak of protest, and the sharp pain that flared up in his back at the sudden movement. "Don't go to the Justice Center tomorrow," he croaked. "_Please_ don't."

Katniss stiffened and pulled away. "Prim needs shoes and clothing. Mom needs medical supplies. We need tallow, salt, tea, soap, thread, needles...I can't hunt or gather any of that." She scowled at him but her voice was calm.

"Is this why you were so reluctant to eat breakfast this morning? To make sure the food didn't run out?" She nodded, a familiar, stubborn look on her face.

He wanted to help her. He _desperately_ wanted to. But he knew he was no position to help, not enough for things like shoes. For god's sake, he was about to start sleeping on his brother's sofa.

Peeta ran his fingers through his hair, looking for a solution and finding none. He also remembered what Prim had told him—don't give her anything tangible; do give lots of hugs, do be patient.

"When are you going?" he asked.

"After school."

"I'll go with you."

"Why?" She looked at him with deep wariness. Even in his despair over what she was doing, he couldn't help but smile at her just a little.

"Because," he said pulling her back in for a hug, "that's what friends do. We support each other. I promise I won't argue about it with you. I just...really hate that you have to do it at all." She didn't pull away. She still couldn't wrap her arms around his waist, so she kept her arms folded up against herself. But she laid the palm of one hand flat against his chest.

"How many slips?" He was almost afraid to ask but he needed to know.

"Seventeen, so far. Eighteen after tomorrow." Thirteen more than him. He closed his eyes and buried his face into her hair. What he wouldn't give to remove those extra slips. Or end the Reaping altogether. He pulled her closer as if to protect her from the Games themselves.

He realized with a pang of sorrow that Katniss was not much taller than Prim. Prim was about the same age now as Katniss was when their father died. How many meals had Katniss missed in the last few years that kept her from growing like she should have? Peeta was not especially tall-none of the Mellark men were-but Katniss barely came up to his shoulder. And he could tell that she was too thin.

She continued, "If Rye can start getting us some work, I may be able to skip having to take out tesserae on my birthday. I've gone every year since I turned 12." She was quiet for a minute, then asked, "Peeta, how did you know that my birthday was on the 8th?" She had started rubbing her thumb back and forth against his chest. His heart fluttered a little bit.

"Because your father used to come in and trade for little cakes on your birthdays. You were May 8th. Prim was November 17th. Your mother was January 4th." He started stroking her braid with one hand.

"Oh, I remember those cakes," she sighed contentedly. "When's your birthday?"

"June 2nd."

"What kind of cake did you get on your birthday?"

"None. We've never celebrated birthdays at my house. All three of us have June or July birthdays. Hard to celebrate getting a year older that close to the Reaping."

His back was acting up again. He reluctantly pulled away and laid down on his cot. She lit another candle, sat on the floor in front of his cot, crossed her legs and faced him.

"How do you think your parents will take you going to live with Bannock?" Katniss was doing a poor job of keeping her distaste for Mr. and Mrs. Mellark out of her voice.

"Pretty sure I don't care. But if I had to guess, Marigold will be furious and Dad will be disappointed."

"It's weird to think about, that our parents used to date each other," Katniss mused. "If it had worked out between them, we'd be brother and sister."

Peeta stared at her for a moment, a twinkle in his eyes. "But then I'd be attracted to my own sister! I suppose that should gross me out but with you, it's kinda hot."

Right on cue, Katniss turned scarlet.

"Totally hot," Peeta continued, warming to the topic. "You know, Katniss, I _am _injured here. Be a good sister and give me a sponge bath, would you, please?"

"Peeta, stop it!" Katniss shouted, her voice caught between laughter and righteous indignation. Peeta laughed too, then immediately regretted it.

"Ow, ow, ow," Peeta breathed, "laughing hurts."

"Serves you right for being a pervert," Katniss retorted. But she didn't even try to hide the smile on her face.

There was a single sharp knock on the front door, then Rye let himself and Mandor inside. They walked into the living room and started unpacking their instruments. Mandor had his mandolin. "Where's Prim?" Rye asked.

"She's helping my mom deliver a baby," Katniss explained.

"Oh, you two have been here alone? I do hope I'm interrupting something," Rye insinuated.

Peeta quipped, "Give Rye the sleep syrup, Katniss. He's sounds a lot smarter when he doesn't talk."

Rye, Mandor and Katniss practiced, with Katniss sitting up against the cot like she had last night. Peeta listened and watched, but his mind kept going back to the Reaping, and the tesserae, and those thirteen extra slips. He retrieved his sketchbook and opened it to the drawing of the clock.

He carefully erased the wild turkey feathers that he had drawn for the fletching. In their place, he drew the distinctive, glossy black and white feathers of a mockingjay. It was a small, subtle bit of rebellion, using the feathers of a living example of Capitol overreach. It wasn't exactly revolutionary, but he felt better for it.

After an hour or so of rehearsal, Rye and Mandor called it a night, and started packing up their instruments. Peeta called Rye over and handed him the drawing. Rye looked at for a moment, before asking, "What's the flower all about?"

"It's a katniss blossom."

Peeta half-expected Rye to scoff at that, but instead Rye looked thoughtful.

Katniss and Mandor walked over to look at it. Katniss smiled at Peeta when she saw it. The approval in her eyes was all the praise he needed.

Mandor rumbled, "Fuckin' A, Rye. You never told me your brother's a fuckin' artist." His voice literally made the thin walls in the house vibrate.

"He's more like an idiot savant," Rye said, "but he has his uses." Katniss scowled at Rye, who ignored her, still studying the drawing. "It works," Rye finally decreed. He handed it back to Peeta. He and Mandor said their goodbyes and left, Rye making ribald parting comments about leaving the two of them alone.

Katniss ordered Peeta to go to the bathroom one last time before taking his sleep syrup. Peeta did, and came back from the bathroom to find that Katniss had blown out all but one candle, and had turned down the blankets on his cot. She gave him the syrup, then knelt down to tuck him in. This was wholly unnecessary at this point, as Peeta was perfectly able to arrange his own blankets. Still, he enjoyed it and he remembered what Prim had said. _Let her take care of you in her own way_. She brushed his bangs back.

"I'm going to miss this when I go to Bannock's," he told her.

"So will I," she admitted. "Peeta? Will we still be friends once you leave?"

He took her other hand, frowning at her. "I hope so. Don't you want to be?"

"Yes, but I don't want you to have to give up your whole social circle at school just because of me."

Peeta could feel the syrup start to work. "Katniss, I told you. Any man who hides behind excuses is unworthy of you. We're friends, you and me. Besides," he yawned, "not one of those crapsacks ever tucked me in."

She softly laughed, and pulled the blankets up around his chin. Just as he slipped into unconsciousness, he could have sworn she kissed his cheek and whispered, "Goodnight, Peeta Mellark."


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: Hi, everybody! I hope your early summer (or autumn, depending on your hemisphere) is going well for all of you. Thanks to all of you who faved, followed and reviewed. The continued support this story gets just blows me away.**

**Updates have been down to once-a-week since my RL became unusually hectic. I'm hoping to get back to twice-a-week soon now that things have settled down a bit. As my characters become more developed, though, they seem to have more to say. Chapters are getting a little longer, so it may be that I settle into a routine of longer chapters a little less often. **

**My betas, dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar, deserve home deliveries of luscious baked goods from a shirtless Rye Mellark. That's how awesome these two woman are. **

**Chapter 24—Panem Parental Lecture Series: Reproduction, Part 1**

After kissing an unconscious Peeta goodnight, Katniss finished her nighttime routine and went to bed. She lay there and thought about Peeta's offer to go with her to the Justice Building tomorrow. He clearly didn't want her to go, but he seemed to understand that she had to. She decided she liked the idea of having him for company. Besides, it would be good to see him again.

Katniss was still awake when Rosemary and Prim returned about an hour later. The miner and her new infant son were both fine and resting comfortably. Prim was so exhausted that Katniss had to help her get undressed. Prim didn't even have the energy to say goodnight. She just collapsed onto the bed and fell asleep without bothering to pull up the covers. Katniss snuggled in next to her, kissed her forehead and pulled the covers up over them both. Now that Prim was home safe, Katniss quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, Katniss awoke to the low voices of Rosemary and Peeta in the kitchen. Letting Prim sleep, Katniss got dressed as quietly as she could before joining them. Peeta sat at the kitchen table fully dressed, his satchel on the floor next to his chair.

A plate of new muffins sat on the table. Peeta handed her one as she made lunch for herself and Prim. This time, she didn't argue, she just thanked him. "Did Rye stop by this morning?" she asked around a mouthful of pumpkin muffin.

"No," Peeta shook his head, "my dad came over." Peeta had that closed-off look on his face that Katniss was beginning to associate with his parents, so she didn't press it. Instead, she asked him how he was feeling.

"Better, thanks to the Everdeen women." Peeta patted his satchel. "I've been given the all-clear to leave, so I'm moving in with Bannock this morning. I should be back at school tomorrow."

Rosemary was writing out instructions for Peeta. "No running, no lifting anything over 10 pounds, and no excessive bending for the next two weeks. Continue to drink plenty of fluids. Obviously, if the bleeding begins again, come back right away." She handed the list to him. Peeta nodded and put it in his pocket.

Rosemary got up, poured herself another tea and started stirring something on the stove. With her back still turned, she said, "Peeta, I'm glad you have been able to find another living situation. I cannot tell you how sorry I am that I have been a part of the problem for you. And I'm even more sorry that Katniss was dragged into it."

Katniss set her tea down on the table and said, "Dragged into what?"

Peeta sighed. "I'm out of a job, apparently. Marigold is angry that I'm moving in with Bannock, but apparently coming here for treatment is unforgivable. She told Dad that I was no longer welcome at the bakery for any reason. And Dad said that until things get settled, he can't trade with you anymore."

Katniss felt like the wind had been knocked out of her. Rooba wouldn't take squirrels, and Greasy Sae didn't always have enough coin to trade for them. She really depended on Mr. Mellark to trade her squirrels for bread.

And Peeta! What was he going to do to help Bannock with the overhead? Would Bannock kick him out? She thought of Peeta living alone in one of the abandoned shacks in the Seam, with nobody to look after him. She couldn't allow that to happen, anymore than she could allow it to happen to Prim. She reached across the table and squeezed Peeta's hand. "We'll work something out," she told him in what she hoped was a reassuring voice.

Peeta looked surprised, but he squeezed her hand back. "Katniss," he said, "you don't need to worry about me, I'll be fine." Katniss raised one eyebrow at him, then let go of his hand and picked her tea back up.

Rosemary, who had been leaning against the stove watching the exchange, laughed softly into her teacup. "It's a little late for that, Peeta," she informed him. "You're on Katniss' watch list, now." She smiled a little at her oldest daughter.. Katniss pretended she simply hadn't heard the conversation at all, but when Rosemary ran her hand over her hair as she walked by, Katniss didn't pull away like she usually did.

They waited until the last possible second to wake Prim, knowing how late she had stayed up the night before. When the Hawthorne boys arrived, Katniss, Prim and Peeta left with them, Peeta hugging Mrs. Everdeen and thanking her profusely. Peeta told Katniss he'd see her after school, gave a halfhearted wave and walked towards town. The rest of them headed towards school.

Katniss filled Gale in on Peeta's new living situation. "So now," Katniss wrapped up, "you'll have to trade our squirrels with the baker because I've been banned from the premises until further notice."

"She fires her own son. Unbelievable. So what'll Peeta do now for income?" Gale asked.

"I don't know," Katniss told him. "His dad just told him this morning, so I doubt he knows."

"Have you thought about teaching him to hunt?"

"Gale, Peeta can't hunt."

"How do you know he can't? If he's willing to risk going into the woods—and he clearly is—let him learn. Besides, if it turns out he really can't hunt, he can still learn snares, and plants to gather," Gale suggested. "But he needs to be able to feed himself and his family."

"You're better at snares, maybe you should teach him."

"Maybe I should," Gale said, then changed the subject. "Why are you meeting him this afternoon? Gotta date or something?"

Katniss tried not to bristle at Gale's teasing tone. "He's walking me to the Justice Building while I sign up for tesserae."

"Oh my god, tell me he isn't. Catnip, that is the _worst_ date I've ever heard of," Gale chided playfully.

"Oh, shut up, Gale, it isn't a date. He's just being a friend. And speaking of date, how did your meeting with Madge on Saturday go?"

"Um, well," Gale had a smile that Katniss had never seen on him before, "it went great, actually. Keep this to yourself, but we're kind of seeing each other now. "

"So my two best friends are dating each other? This is perfect!" Katniss exclaimed. "You're seeing somebody I like and I don't lose a hunting partner to some jealous bimbo."

"Aw, that's thoughtful, Catnip," Gale remarked dryly, more to himself than to Katniss. "I'm happy for us, too."

Once they arrived at school, Katniss parted ways with Gale and headed to her classes. At lunch, she pounced on Madge.

"So," Katniss said conversationally, "you and Gale."

Madge smiled, unwrapped her sandwich and replied in the same conversational tone, "So. You and Peeta."

Katniss frowned. Were she and Peeta dating? "I'm not exactly sure what is going on with me and Peeta."

"Well, officially, nothing is going on between me and Gale. You're not one to gossip, but for the record, don't say anything yet. Gale is in for a lot of grief if we ever go public. Besides, we should still keep up appearances for Mrs. Mellark."

"Why bother?" Katniss asked. "He's not even living there anymore." Katniss gave Madge a quick rundown of Peeta's living and working situation.

"Interesting," Madge responded. "You have to wonder how boys as nice as Rye and Peeta could have come from the loins of Marigold Mellark."

"Did somebody mention my birth mother's name?" Rye asked as he sat down with them. "I have some new names for her. Let me know if you want to hear them."

"Can the bakery even function without Peeta?" asked Madge. "Your parents will have to hire an apprentice, won't they?"

"Probably. I expect a few weeks of falling profits will convince Marigold to let Peeta return to work, although he may not want to after all of this. Anyway, enough about that woman. Everdeen, we're rehearsing tonight."

"OK. I don't know if Peeta's up for the walk, though. I'll see him after school, so I'll ask him if he's up for it."

"Well, if he's not, I'll walk you. We need to get cracking, because we've been offered a job. We're going to be playing at your cousin's toasting."

"My cousin?" Katniss was confused. "I don't have a cousin."

"Yes, you do," Madge and Rye said in unison.

Katniss let this information sink in. She had cousins? Since when?

"You seriously didn't know?" Madge looked a little flabbergasted.

"No," Katniss said honestly. "My parents never discussed their families, much. My father's parents died before I was born. All I ever heard about my mother's family was that she'd been disowned by her parents. I think Dad was an only child. I just assumed Mom was, too."

Madge pinched the bridge of her nose and closed her eyes like she was getting a headache. "Katniss, I swear to god, sometimes I wonder what on earth goes through your mother's head." She sighed, then continued, "Your mom has an older brother, Ash Bay. He got married a few years before your parents got together."

Rye picked up the story. " Their youngest kid, Ander, is a couple of years older than Bannock. He's getting married on Saturday and just heard about our band. He stopped by the bakery this morning before I left, and hired us."

"Ander works with my dad," Madge told them. "Knowing Dad, he probably told Ander about the band, hoping to get business for you guys." She turned to Katniss. "My parents and I have been invited to the toasting, so I'll be there, too."

Katniss ate the rest her lunch in silence, while Rye and Madge chatted with each other. After lunch, Madge invited Katniss to come to dinner at the Undersees before the rehearsal.

Katniss spent the rest of the day in a bit of a daze. She had never, even once, given any thought to whether her mother had family besides the parents who disinherited her. Now she was going to meet at least one of her cousins, and likely her uncle and grandparents, too.

After school, Katniss told her mother about the toasting on Saturday. Rosemary listened with her usual placid expression, then said, "I doubt anybody will give you any trouble, Katniss. You're just the hired help, in their eyes. I doubt they even think of you as kin."

"I'm not worried about _that_," Katniss cried out. "I just don't understand why you didn't tell me about your brother and my cousins."

"Ash and his wife fully supported my parents' decision to disinherit me. They aren't my family anymore. I saw no reason to refer to them as such."

This answer didn't satisfy Katniss. "Doesn't it bother you that I had to hear about it from Rye and Madge?"

"I made a clean break," Rosemary explained, not looking the least bit bothered. "From everybody, friends and family both. If any of them cared more about me than they did their social standing, they would come see me here in the Seam. The only two people who have ever tried to find me are Farl Mellark and John Undersee."

"Madge's dad? Why?"

Rosemary stood up to make more tea as she talked with Katniss. "How much do you know about Mrs. Undersee?"

"Not a lot. That she has terrible headaches that keep her in bed with a lot of morphling in her system."

Rosemary was looking out the window over the kitchen sink. Katniss recognized the look on her mother's face. At this very moment, Rosemary was living in the past somewhere. "Mrs. Undersee lost her sister when we were not much older than you. She never really recovered from it. John came to me a few times to see if I could help her, but nothing I have can compete with morphling."

Katniss immediately felt some sympathy for Mrs. Undersee. Katniss knew if she ever lost Prim, she'd probably never recover, either.

The whistling of the kettle jolted them both from their thoughts. Katniss got up and told Rosemary that she was leaving for the Justice Building, and that Madge had invited her to dinner.

"Katniss, before you go, we need to have a talk."

"About what, another branch of the family tree?" Katniss sarcastically replied.

"Sit down, sweetie. And don't take that tone of voice with me." Rosemary poured them both cups of tea and joined Katniss at the table. "We need to discuss Peeta."

Katniss could feel herself blush and hated it. "What about Peeta?"

"I like him, he's a very nice boy. I don't have any objection to you seeing him, but I do have some ground rules. First and foremost," Rosemary looked sternly at Katniss, "if the walks from band rehearsal turn into detours to the Slag Heap, you are out of the band, and I will not allow you to see Peeta anymore."

"Mom!" Katniss felt like she'd been slapped, almost as if she'd been accused of doing something wrong. "I'd _never_ go to the Slag Heap, it's disgusting!" Katniss protested.

"I'm glad to hear it. But you and I both know that 'going to the Slag Heap' isn't about location, it's about behavior. You and Peeta will walk straight here after rehearsals. No detours. This isn't negotiable. The whole reason you have an escort at all is because it's the proper thing to do. If it turns into anything improper, I will hear about it."

Katniss mumbled her agreement.

"Second," Rosemary continued, "if you go on any dates with Peeta, your curfew is 11:00 p.m. No exceptions. Peeta will come here to get you and he will bring you back. You will let me know where you are going, what time you expect to be back and who else will be there." Katniss found the idea of Peeta wanting to take her anywhere so ludicrous that she didn't even bother to argue. She just agreed to the curfew.

"Finally, I want you to start charting your menstrual cycle every day, and I want access to it."

"Um, OK, why?" Katniss inquired.

"Because, Katniss, I don't want you getting pregnant!" Rosemary said, somewhat indignantly.

Katniss covered her face with her hands and mumbled, "Oh my god, Mom, this conversation is completely unnecessary."

"Oh, I disagree, Katniss. This is a very necessary conversation."

Rosemary pulled Katniss' hands from her face and clasped them in her own. "Sweetie, I know you've had to grow up too quickly in some areas, and while I'm sad about the fact that some of it was my fault, the fact is I'm not going to have to teach you how to stick to a budget, or keep house, or take care of your own.

"But when it comes to relationships and sex, you know next to nothing. You're almost sixteen. Most of the girls your age are dating. Some of them are already sexually active. There are some herbal remedies that can prevent pregnancy. Unfortunately, they aren't fully effective. Knowing your cycle will let _me_ know which herbs are best for you and will let _you_ know when to avoid having sex. And that is why you will keep a chart on your cycle and I will have full access to it."

"Mom," Katniss wanted to pull her hands away and cover her ears, but doubted it would look very mature. "I'm never having kids. I plan to avoid having sex until I die. Seriously. I've never even kissed a boy. I don't need birth control."

"Not yet, you don't," agreed Rosemary, "but whether you decide to have children or not, remaining a virgin the rest of your life is unrealistic. And if you get pregnant before your last Reaping, you risk going into the Arena pregnant, or leaving your baby behind here in Twelve. Either way, the baby's father gets taken to the Capitol, and you'll never see him again."

Katniss thought of being pregnant while trying to survive the Games. It made her shudder. "Has that ever happened?" she asked her mother. "Have there ever been pregnant tributes before?"

"Once, when I was a little younger than Prim, the girl from Eight was in her last trimester. A lot of people called her some pretty ugly names. The audience booed during her entire interview with Caesar Flickerman. It was one of the few times he ever lost control of an audience. I felt so sorry for her. She was embarrassed, but you could tell she wanted her baby, loved it already." Rosemary's eyes were a little clouded over, and Katniss could tell this memory still upset her mom.

"That poor girl didn't last one minute in the Arena. She tried to run for shelter, but she wasn't very fast, obviously. The boy from her District was big and strong, like a Career, and he'd had a high training score. But he didn't even try for a weapon at the Cornucopia. Instead, he ran up right behind her and broke her neck. At first, I thought it was a terrible thing for him to do. Now, I see it for the kindness it was. Somebody more bloodthirsty would have used her—and the baby—for some very gruesome television."

Katniss swallowed the lump in her throat. "Ok, Mom. I'll do the chart."

Rosemary leaned across the table and hugged Katniss. "That's all I ask. I'll place a chart for you in the bathroom. Fill it out every morning, and I'll keep an eye on it."

They both stood up. Katniss wasn't sure why she did it, but she hugged her mother. After a moment of shock that her daughter was initiating any sort of affection, Rosemary squeezed her back.

Before leaving, Katniss brushed her hair and teeth, re-did her braid, and put on a clean, heather-colored shirt that Prim said brought out her eyes. Pulling their wagon behind her, Katniss walked to Bannock's place. Bannock and Nikki lived in a tiny house no larger than the Everdeens', although it was much sturdier.

Peeta opened the door when she knocked. He looked better. He'd clearly had a bath, and some color had returned to his cheeks. Before she could say anything, though, he pulled her in for a long hug. "You are a sight for sore eyes," he whispered before letting her go.

She stood back and looked at him. His eyes were troubled. "Bad day?" she asked.

He nodded. "I'll fill you in later. First, come meet Nikki." Leaving her wagon on the porch, Katniss walked into the house.

A very short, very pregnant blonde woman was in the kitchen. "You must be Katniss!" she cried out, with the hillbilliest accent Katniss had ever heard. It sounded like _Yew mus' be Kaatniss_.

Katniss just stared at her. Everyone in Twelve had Southern accents to varying degrees, but Nikki's accent made Ripper sound like a Capitol scholar.

"I'm Nikki, Peet's sister-in-law," she said, unexpectedly pulling Katniss in for a big, tight hug. Katniss was a little alarmed at just how strong this woman was. "Y'all been takin good care of him these last few days. I'm grateful ta you and your momma. He's had himself a day, bet he's happy to see you. Miss Marigold had quite the scene at the bakery today, didn't she, Peet." Peeta nodded his head tiredly.

"I'll let him here fill you in on all the awfuls," Nikki continued, patting Peeta sympathetically on his arm. "I know you gotta take care of some business, I won't keep y'all. Listen, sugar, you just c'mon over any time you like, no invite needed. It was nice ta meet you. Now y'all scoot." She grabbed Katniss and gave her another bone-cracking hug.

"Um, it's nice to meet you, too," Katniss replied, finally finding her voice and awkwardly returning the hug.

Katniss and Peeta left, taking the wagon with them. "Nikki seems nice," Katniss offered.

"She is. She's got a big heart."

"Where on earth did she get that accent?" Katniss knew the question was a little rude, but asked it anway.

"Apparently, they were mountain folk before the Dark Days," Peeta chuckled. "Nikki says family legend has it that her ancestors were so cut off from civilization that they weren't even aware that there had been a war, much less that a new nation had been created. I don't know how much of the legend is true, but Nikki's grandfather told her that the Capitol relocated the family to Twelve when he was a boy."

As interested as Katniss was to hear about Nikki's background, she was more concerned with Peeta. "What happened today with your mother?"

Peeta told her that last night, on his way home from the Everdeens, Bannock had stopped by the bakery to explain Peeta's new living situation to Mr. Mellark. Farl and Bannock had packed up most of Peeta's belongings. This consisted of a couple of bags of clothes, his backpack and his artwork. Bannock took the clothing, but didn't have time for a second trip.

Today, Bannock went to the bakery over his lunch break to get the rest of Peeta's things. When Marigold saw Bannock, she started screaming that Peeta wasn't going to get anything else.

"Dad apparently tried to calm her down, but, well, that never works. You know those big paper bags we have? The kind with the handles we use to bag up large orders?" Katniss nodded. She'd seen people leaving the bakery with them. "Bannock had put all of my artwork and supplies in one of those bags. She grabbed it out of his hand and threw it into one of the oven fires. All of my paintings, brushes, paints, and most of my sketchbooks just went up in flames," he said quietly. "Years of work, gone just like that, except for the two sketchbooks I brought with me when we went to the woods."

Katniss had no words to tell Peeta how awful she felt for him, so she slipped her hand into his.

"Ban said she ruined an oven full of bread. Plus, that oven is out of commission until it's been cleaned. That's going to put orders behind for a couple of days, at least. She didn't just ruin all of my artwork. She's basically guaranteed that there won't be a profit at the bakery this month. I don't know why she hates me so much."

"I don't understand it, either," Katniss responded. And she didn't. The _whole reason_ Katniss never wanted children was because she knew she would love them so much that it would kill her to lose them to the Games. But Mrs. Mellark treated Peeta as though he were disposable.

They didn't say anything the rest of the way to the Justice Building. They went through the front doors and Katniss led them to the large, marble counter in the main lobby, the wagon wheels echoing loudly. She filled out the paperwork and handed it to the woman behind the counter. The woman fiddled with her computer for a minute, printed up a sheet of paper, and handed to to Katniss. Finally, the woman pressed a button, and a small metal gate at the end of the counter swung open.

Katniss led Peeta though the gate and down a short hallway. At the end of it, another worker—this one a middle-age man with a sidearm—sat at a desk next to a closed door. Katniss handed him her paperwork. The worker looked them over, nodded and said, "Right. Hold on."

He disappeared through the door, then returned a minute later with three packages wrapped in brown paper. Each package was about the size of a small backpack. He placed them in the wagon for Katniss, then sat back down behind his desk.

"OK," Katniss said to Peeta. "That's it."

He picked up her hand again as they left the Justice Building. "What are you doing now?" Peeta asked her.

"I'm due at Madge's house tonight for dinner but I've got a lot more time to kill than I expected. I guess I'll just head home."

"Or, you could just come back to Bannock and Nikki's with me."

Katniss squeezed his hand in acceptance. "I'd like that. By the way, Rye says if you can't walk me home tonight, he'll do it because we have to rehearse no matter what. He got us a toasting gig on Saturday."

"I'll walk you back," Peeta assured her.

When they got back to the house, Peeta took Katniss into the very tiny back yard. They sat on the porch swing. Peeta had to sit sideways, with one foot underneath him and the other on the ground, to keep his bruises from touching the back of the swing. Katniss mirrored his posture to face him, as well.

Peeta took her hand and weaved their fingers together. "Tell me about this toasting you're playing on Saturday."

Katniss told him about Ander Bay's toasting, and how she had to learn from Rye and Madge that Ander was her cousin. "It's not a very good feeling," she complained, "learning that everybody in the District knows my family tree except me. I know in the scheme of things it isn't a huge deal, but still."

"It makes you wonder what else in your history you don't know," Peeta responded.

"Exactly." Peeta once again put her own feelings into words when she couldn't.

Peeta looked down at their linked hands. He caught his lower lip with his teeth and, without looking at Katniss, said, "If I ask you something, do you promise to answer honestly?"

"Of course."

"Did you kiss me last night as I was falling asleep?"

_Oh my god, I've offended him,_ Katniss thought. Still, she'd promised to answer honestly. "Um, yes. I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Peeta assured her. She looked up to find him smiling at her.

"You're not offended?"

"Katniss," Peeta scooted closer, "the girl of my dreams _tucked me into bed last night and gave me a kiss on the cheek_. I'm not offended, I'm delighted. I asked because I wasn't sure if it was a dream."

"It was real," Katniss mumbled, looking down at their hands again. '_The girl of my dreams_,' she thought. "I don't understand it."

"Don't understand what?" Peeta asked.

"Why you like me so much!" She hadn't meant to sound so frustrated, but there it was. She risked a glance at Peeta. He was frowning now.

"Why shouldn't I like you?"

"Because I'm not a nice person, Peeta! I'm not good, like you or Prim. I don't make friends. People _like_ you. They _love_ Prim. They tolerate me." Katniss was shaking a little now, although she wasn't sure if it was from anger or fear.

"You have that last part backwards, Katniss," Peeta said gently. "It isn't that people tolerate _you_. It's that you tolerate _them_, and just barely at that. "

Katniss had let go of his hand and crossed her own arms against herself. She resolutely looked down at the swing seat, trying to stop shaking. If Peeta expected a response from her, well, he could damn well wait all day.

"I do agree that you aren't nice," continued. "'Nice' is too mild a word for you. You're fierce, loyal, strong and beautiful. And you are more than good, Katniss. Everybody who sees you with Prim, or who has watched you step into your father's shoes these last few years, knows it."

Katniss kept her arms crossed, her eyes down. Peeta placed his hands on her shoulders and very gently pulled her to his chest. She was once again surrounded by the feeling of safety when his arms finally wrapped around her. Her shaking stopped. He pulled her as close as he could, and used his toe to gently push the swing back and forth.

"I'm braver with you in my life" Peeta's voice was gentle and low. She could hear it rumble in his chest as he talked. "If you weren't, I'd still be at the bakery, taking whatever random punishment Marigold dished out, while Dad waited in the hallway with a bag of ice. You make me feel protected, somehow. You're like my talisman."

Katniss started to relax a little as he continued to gently rock them on the swing. "You're also very tiny," he frowned. "You should eat more."

"I'm seeing a baker," she deadpanned. "Maybe he'll fatten me up."

Peeta didn't laugh. "I'm not a baker anymore. I'm never going back there, even if Marigold allowed it. I just don't know what else to do before I can join the mines. Baking is really all I know."

"I can teach you to hunt and gather. Gale can teach you how to set snares. And if you could ever find a way to make tesserae bread taste good, you'd be the most popular boy in the Seam."

"It doesn't make good bread, there isn't enough gluten in it. Turn it into a cracker. I'll show you this week."

As they had been talking, Katniss had relaxed her legs so that they were stretched out on the swing while she leaned sideways into Peeta's chest. One of his arms rested comfortably around her waist, the other had wandered up to her hair and was holding her head to his chest. The gentle rocking of the swing was almost hypnotic. She closed her eyes, listened to his heartbeat.

"Katniss?" Peeta whispered, "why did you kiss me last night?"

Katniss froze. "Because I didn't know you were still awake."

"If you'd known I was still awake, would you have kissed me?" 

"No."

"Why not?"

Katniss tried to make herself smaller, as if it were somehow possible to hide from her own words. "Because I'm scared you'll kiss me back."

"You're afraid of me kissing you?"

Katniss hated the tears beginning to form in her eyes. "Yes," she whispered, barely keeping her voice under control.

"Why?" Peeta sounded hurt.

Katniss didn't think she could explain it. She wasn't even sure herself. Being in his arms felt like something inside of her was slowly repairing itself. Kissing would pull it all apart again.

Finally, she managed to gasp out, "It feels safe here."

Peeta looked down and noticed she was crying. "Oh, god, Katniss, I'm sorry. I don't know why you bother with me. It seems all I do is make you cry." He tilted her face up a little and she could see worry in his blue eyes. He wiped her tears off with his thumb. "You feel safe here? Here at Bannock's?"

"It feels safe _here_," Katniss answered placing her hand on his chest.

"Oh," Peeta breathed, understanding relaxing his face. He rested his cheek on the top of her head. He took her hand, which she was resting on his chest, into his. "You are safe here." He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it, then put it back down on his chest.

Katniss listened to Peeta's breathing and his heartbeat. After a couple of minutes, the swing stopped rocking. His breathing deepened, and his body relaxed against the porch swing as he dozed off.

Katniss stayed curled up against him for a few minutes. She looked at her small, dark hand in his much larger, much lighter one. After a bit, Nikki came out onto the porch to check on them. She smiled at Katniss, then motioned for her to join Nikki inside.

Katniss tried to extricate herself from Peeta's embrace but when she started to move, his arms tightened around her. She tried a couple more times, while Nikki looked on in amusement. Finally, Nikki gently shook Peeta's shoulder. Katniss craned her head up to see him open his blue eyes about halfway. He blinked at Nikki, snuggled Katniss a little closer, then started to go back to sleep.

"Peeta, honey, you let go of Katniss now," Nikki soothed, "and go take yourself a proper nap. We girls are gonna chat and solve all the world's problems." Peeta finally loosened his grip on Katniss, and they both stood up. Nikki guided them back into the house, and all but pushed Peeta into her bedroom. "Go sleep on our bed, honey, I'll wake ya for dinner." Peeta pulled Katniss in for a clumsy hug, then stumbled into the bedroom.

Nikki led Katniss into the tiny kitchen and they sat at the table. "I don't wish bodily harm on too many folk," Nikki confided, "but that woman deserves a long, slow death after what she done today. He's better now, but you should have seen him when Bannock got back and told him all his artwork was gone. She coulda cut off his leg and hurt him less."

Katniss chewed her lip. What she was about to ask really wasn't her business, so she lowered her voice. "Can you and Bannock keep him here even though he lost his job?"

"Where else is he gonna go, sugar?" Nikki asked, clearly confused by the question.

"Peeta told Bannock last night that he'd pay his bakery wages here to help you guys out, but that if you couldn't keep him, he'd go squat in the Seam."

Nikki looked horrified. "Does he really think he has ta pay his way here? Sugar, Peeta's _family_. I'm not gonna let him go homeless! If I'd had my way, he'd a' been here right after the toastin', but Bannock thought it would be safe for him, now that Peet's near full grown."

She leaned back in her chair and placed a hand on either side of her enormous belly, caressing it. "I'll tell you what, Katniss. Farl and Marigold, between the two of them, ain't worth even one of their sons. Farl loves them, I know he does, but he let his guilt over not loving Marigold get in the way of protecting his kids. I know you and Peet are new to each other, but I oughta warn you. All three of them boys hide way more hurt and pain than they show. "

Katniss stared down at her own hands, which were folded on the table, unsure what Nikki's warning meant. "Are you telling me I should stay away?" she asked, her breath hitching in her throat.

"Lord, no, sugar. I want you around Peeta as much as either of you can stand it. You're good for him. I just want you to understand that that sweet boy in there spends most of his waking moments hating himself because his parents made him believe he's unlovable."

Katniss fought the urge to run into the bedroom and tuck Peeta in. She glanced at the clock and noticed the time. "I need to go, Madge is expecting me for dinner," she explained, standing up. "Thank you for having me. And thank you for letting Peeta stay with you." Nikki stood up and walked Katniss to the front door and gave Katniss another bone crushing hug.

"Sugar, I meant it when I said you're welcome here anytime."

"Thank you, Nikki. I appreciate it." Katniss hugged her back, touched by Nikki's sincerity. Then she grabbed her wagon, pointed herself in the direction of the Mayor's house, and left.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: I can't thank all of you enough for the reviews, faves and follows. Ask any author here-getting an email alert about a fave, follow or review is better than cupcakes. I'm still trying to get back to a twice-a-week update schedule, so far without any success. **

**Betalove: dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar are amazing betas. **

**Chapter 25—Panem Parental Lecture Series: Reproduction, Part 2**

Madge sat on her back porch and watched as Katniss literally _stomped_ up to their house, pulling a wagon of tesserae packages behind her. Madge knew what those packages represented, and struggled to keep her anger hidden. The back porch was absolutely not a safe place to express her hatred for the Capitol. Besides, Madge knew that Katniss viewed any expression of anger on her behalf as pointless.

Madge stood up to open the little gate and let Katniss in. Katniss' scowl was so deep, it looked like she was ready to stick a knife in somebody. "I do hope it isn't me that has you so angry," Madge said dryly.

"Mrs. Mellark!" Katniss spat out the name like it was a dead bug in her mouth. "You won't _believe_ what she did to Peeta today."

"You mean, besides kicking him out and firing him?"

"Yes," Katniss seethed. "Besides that."

"Well, come on inside. You can tell me and Dad over dinner." Madge took the handle of the wagon and pulled it onto the porch. She led Katniss into the kitchen, where the Mayor sat at the table with a great deal of paperwork in front of him. When the girls entered, he cleared it all away.

"Katniss, good to see you again! Let me get my stuff out of the way and we can eat."

"Thank you for having me, Mayor," Katniss replied. Madge was glad to see that, even as angry was she was, Katniss at least remembered her manners. The girls dished up dinner—a thick, vegetable stew and sliced bread with butter—then all three sat down to eat.

For the first time since Madge had known her, Katniss simply accepted the food. She didn't argue over whether she ought to trade for it, or offer to pay them back. That, far more than the thunderous look on her friend's face, told Madge how upset Katniss really was.

As they ate, Madge updated her father on Peeta's situation. While John already knew about Peeta's injuries, he had not yet heard that Mrs. Mellark fired Peeta, banished him from the bakery, and forced him to find another place to live. Madge also explained about Peeta's new living situation with Bannock and Nikki Mellark.

"But now something else has happened?" Madge prompted, looking at Katniss.

Katniss told them about the destruction of several years of artwork. According to Katniss, Peeta was a very talented artist. Madge felt awful for Peeta. In many ways, what Mrs. Mellark did to that artwork was worse than physical abuse. Madge glanced at her father, who kept his face neutral as he listened to Katniss.

"Mr. Undersee, can't the Peacekeepers do _anything_ about Mrs. Mellark?" Katniss pleaded.

Madge knew the answer to that was "no." People often asked her father about Peacekeeper involvement in local matters. He'd repeated the official line so frequently, Madge had it memorized.

"Well, Katniss," John gently explained, "the Peacekeepers aren't here for domestic issues. They work here to handle crimes against the Capitol. As long as Mrs. Mellark's disciplinary methods don't prevent Peeta from appearing on Reaping Day, the Capitol leaves those sorts of issues for families to handle on their own."

Technically, this was true. It was also true that, technically, every Peacekeeper in Twelve regularly committed crimes against the Capitol simply by trading at the Hob. For that matter, so did Mayor Undersee every time he traded with Katniss or Gale. Katniss just knew better than to point it out.

"I'm glad Peeta has moved in with his brother," Mr. Undersee commented. "I expect that will be a better situation for him."

"Well, it was either that or he was going to squat in the Seam," Katniss replied.

"Ah. Well, squatting _is_ a crime against the Capitol, so Peeta best stay where is. Will he be able to walk you home this evening, Katniss?"

"He says he can. If not, Rye said he would because we're playing at a toasting this weekend."

"That's right!" Mr. Undersee said brightly. "Ander Bay's toasting. He had mentioned last week that he wanted to hire musicians. I told him how promising you all were. I'm glad he decided to hire you."

"Mr. Undersee, did you know he was my cousin?" Katniss bluntly asked.

"Of course, I did. Why, didn't you?" he teased. The smile on his face fell as he realized that Katniss had _not_ known.

John looked helplessly at his daughter, who explained, "Katniss only knew that Mr. and Mrs. Bay had kicked her mother out of the house. Mrs. Everdeen never told Katniss about the rest of her family. She found out about them this morning from me and Rye."

"Oh. Well, that's unfortunate. Katniss, I apologize. I simply assumed you at least knew about all of your family connections in town."

"Yeah," Katniss scoffed. "So did I."

"Then this will be a good way for you to meet your cousin. Ander is a fine person, and his fiancé, Mona, is a lovely girl."

"What's my uncle like?" Katniss asked.

Here's how Haymitch Abernathy had once described Ash Bay to Mr. Undersee. "That man is so uptight, the only time he smiles is when somebody tickles the rod up his ass." John had laughed for weeks.

Madge raised an eyebrow at her father as he struggled to find a diplomatic way of describing Katniss' uncle. After a minute, all he could come up with was, "Well, Ash probably wasn't the easiest person in the world to have as a father. But nobody is going to give you a hard time, Katniss, I assure you."

"Does Ander know that his cousin is singing at his wedding?" Madge asked her father, while indicating Katniss with her spoon.

"I believe he does. When I told him about how wonderful it has been listening to you rehearse, I quite specifically mentioned that Katniss Everdeen was the lead singer and had an outstanding voice. Ander's response was, 'well, at least one person in the family has talent.'

"Now, if you ladies would be so kind as to clean up, I'm going to take some dinner to Mrs. Undersee."

Madge and Katniss did the dishes while the Mayor prepared a small tray of food and left to take it to his bedridden wife. As soon as he walked out of the kitchen, Madge turned to Katniss and said, "What are you wearing to the wedding on Saturday?"

Katniss looked so startled by the question that she hardly knew what to say. "Oh. Uh, I hadn't thought about it. A dress of some kind, I guess. I'll borrow one of my mother's."

"Oh, I don't think so," Madge admonished. "You are _not_ showing up at your cousin's wedding wearing a dress that your grandparents last saw over twenty years ago on the daughter they kicked out. You will borrow one of mine. And shut up," Madge ordered at Katniss' habitual protest. "You won't 'owe' me for this. You're just borrowing it, not keeping it."

That was a lie. Madge fully intended to "forget" to have Katniss return the outfit. "Besides, I want to see their reaction to how amazing an Everdeen can look."

That was true. If a Seam girl like Katniss could impress a Merchant crowd with not just talent but also beauty, there was hope that the Merchant-Seam divide could end. And if that was too much to hope for, Madge just wanted to see the faces of Rosemary's estranged family when they met Katniss for the first time.

With that, Madge dragged Katniss down the hall and into her bedroom. She pulled out a box from the back of her closet. "These are a few years old," she informed Katniss, "so they're too small for me. Should fit you, though."

Most of the dresses were the ugly, baggy variety that Madge wore all the time. But two outfits looked like possibilities. The first was a short-sleeved, peach-colored dress that came to Katniss' knees. It was a pretty color but too big for Katniss.

The second outfit was much better. It was a long, slender, dark green skirt, with a cream-colored cotton top. "Ok, now take out your braid and put your boots back on." Katniss did as she was told.

Madge stepped back and examined her friend. She looked amazing. The skirt had come to mid-calf on Madge, but was nearly ankle length on Katniss. The material shimmered a bit. The top was a short-sleeved sweater, lightweight, with small flowers knit into the pattern. With her hair down and the hunting boots on, Katniss looked like a woodland nymph.

"Wow, Katniss. You look great," Madge said sincerely.

Katniss gave a shrug that all but said _I could give a shit_. Still, after she put her own clothing back on and re-braided her hair, she hugged Madge and thanked her.

Madge placed the clothing in a bag, and they headed down to the basement to get ready for rehearsal. "By the way," Madge told Katniss, "I bumped into Gale after school. He was whining that he still hadn't heard you sing, so I invited him over tonight." Also, Madge wanted her father to view Gale as something more than just the boy who sold them strawberries.

Rye arrived late, looking distracted and upset. He pulled Katniss aside and they spoke for a few moments. When they finished talking, he unpacked his guitar. "What was that about?" Madge whispered to Katniss while Rye tuned the strings.

"Peeta. Rye came home from school today and learned about the artwork. He's late because he stopped by the boarding house after work to check rental rates."

Rye began the rehearsal by launching into a discussion about the upcoming toasting. He gave unnecessarily explicit instructions about clothing, punctuality, personal hygiene and decorum. Although the band members initially tolerated Rye's mini-lecture and his overbearing tone of voice, after about 10 minutes or so they got restless. Finally, Mr. Undersee reminded Rye that Katniss was still only 15 years old, and needed to leave earlier than everybody else.

Rye looked irritated that he'd been interrupted but, wisely, didn't say anything. Instead, he started the rehearsal with "The Toasting Song." After only a few bars, he stopped them and demanded some changes.

It quickly became clear that Rye was on edge. He was much more critical than usual. He paused more often, made more changes and seemed unsure of what he wanted from them. After spending 15 minutes on the first half of "Take Me for Longing," where Rye changed the starting key several times in a row, Mandor said what the rest of the band was feeling. "We'll do whatever you want, Rye, but make up your fuckin' mind."

Rye called for a 10 minute break, then stalked out of the basement. Katniss followed him.

"The fuck is wrong with Rye?" Mandor asked.

Mr. Undersee offered up an answer. "I expect he's nervous about your first professional engagement. The Bay family is quite influential in town. A good performance will mean lots of work for all of you, while a poor performance means this is just a hobby. I'm sure all of you know that Rye has long-term plans for this band."

Madge suspected that Rye was far more upset over the fact that his mother was the Wicked Witch of Appalachia, than he was about playing a bunch of treacly love songs at a townie wedding.

Everybody kept glancing at the basement doorway, waiting for Rye and Katniss to come back. When Madge heard footsteps, though, it wasn't just Rye and Katniss. It was Gale and Peeta, as well.

Madge led Gale over to her father. "Dad, you remember Gale," she said. Obviously, Mr. Undersee remembered Gale, but Madge knew her father expected certain formal courtesies to be observed. If she was going to start seeing Gale—even if only in private—her father required an introduction.

As Gale and John made small talk, Madge glanced at Peeta. He looked terrible. He had dark circles under his eyes, a pale cast to his skin and he moved carefully, as if he was in pain. Katniss made sure Peeta was comfortable in an easy chair before she stepped back over to be with the band.

Gale, however, looked like perfection—tousled dark hair; sun-kissed olive skin; hands splayed on his hip bones. Madge had a hard time staying in "timid" mode when she made eye contact with him. His gray eyes smoldered at her. She hid behind her hair to hide the sudden flush of her cheeks.

"Katniss must be pretty good," Gale quietly remarked, "for Rye to tolerate what she was saying to him outside."

Mr. Undersee chuckled, then leaned against the wall in his usual spot. Madge and Gale sat on the floor near Peeta.

Rye picked his guitar back up. He didn't apologize to the band, or mention his behavior. He simply acted if nothing had happened, and started with "Take Me for Longing." Madge watched Gale out of the corner of her eye to see his reaction to his best friend's singing.

When Katniss began to sing, Gale spent one full, astounded minute with his jaw on the floor, then fell onto his back and laughed at himself. Katniss gave them a self-satisfied smile at Gale's reaction. When he sat back up a minute later, a bright smile wreathed his face. "I'm a _moron_," he said under his breath. "When you said she was really good, I honestly thought you were exaggerating."

"I never exaggerate, Gale Hawthorne," Madge said very primly. She tucked her feet underneath her, and folded her hands in her lap. Gale said nothing but he did scoot a little closer to her. He had confessed to her the day before that her prim and proper act turned him on, now that he knew what she was actually hiding.

The rest of the rehearsal went smoothly, with Rye back to normal. When they finished for the night, Gale stood up and made straight for Katniss. He gave her a big hug that pulled her off the ground by at least a foot. He put her back down and put his hands on her shoulders. "Catnip, I'm so sorry I ever doubted you."

Katniss looked pleased, but Madge noticed the small frown on Peeta's face. The frown deepened a minute or two later when Gale told Peeta he could walk Katniss home if he wasn't feeling up to it.

"No, thanks," Peeta glowered, "I'll be fine."

"Sounds good," Gale said, oblivious to Peeta's distress.

Peeta and Rye spoke quietly while Katniss thanked Madge and her father for dinner. They all worked their way upstairs. Katniss gathered up the wagon and the bag of clothes, hugged Madge, then headed to the Seam with Peeta. The rest of the band headed for town.

Soon, it was just Madge, her father and Gale. John cleared his throat and said, "Let's have a seat, kids. I want to talk to the both of you." He led them back into the basement. Madge could tell hear from the tone on his voice that her father was in Mayor Mode.

Gale looked a wee bit nervous.

"So, Gale. I understand you and Margaret are seeing each other."

Gale looked confused. "Who's Margaret?"

"'Madge' is short for 'Margaret,'" Madge explained.

"You're kidding," he said. Madge narrowed her eyes at him as she pulled a hair elastic out of her pocket and smoothed her hair back into a ponytail. Gale turned a shade or two darker, likely remembering where they were—and what they were doing—the last time she had her hair back like that.

"I wanted you both here," Mr. Undersee continued, ignoring the interruption, "to tell you my expectations, both as Margaret's father and as Mayor.

"Gale," Mr. Undersee turned in his chair so he was fully facing Gale, "I know that you are a very responsible young man. I had the unfortunate duty of handing you the medal of valor after your father died. I know how hard you have worked to feed your family. I also think very highly of your mother. She's an incredibly resourceful woman. I have a great deal of respect for you and your family."

"Thank you, sir," Gale said solemnly.

The Mayor acknowledged Gale's thanks with a small nod of his head. "However, the respect I have for you has no bearing on how I feel towards my daughter. If at any point, I catch wind that you are mistreating her, in any way, I will not hesitate to do everything in my power to protect her." Madge knew her father was being deliberately vague. A vague threat often carried more power than a specific one, precisely because it kept its target a little off-balance.

Gale looked Mr. Undersee in the eye and replied, "I'd expect nothing less, sir."

The Mayor's lips twitched for just a moment, hiding a smile. _Good answer_, _Gale_, thought Madge. It was clearly what Mr. Undersee had wanted to hear. He then turned back to include Madge in the conversation. He also dropped the political voice. Now he just sounded like the father of any teenager girl.

"I am not so old or foolish that I can't remember what it was like to be young. However, I am sure I don't have to remind either of you of the consequences you both face should Madge wind up pregnant before her last Reaping. And Gale, let's get something clear right off the bat." Mr. Undersee looked at Gale, but pointed at Madge. "If you knock her up before her last Reaping, no punishment the Capitol can cook up will compare to what I would do to you."

"You'll have to stand in line behind my mother," Gale responded placidly. "But I'm sure she'll be happy to turn my corpse over to you when she's done."

Mr. Undersee genuinely smiled. "Like I said, I always thought very highly of your mother. Now," he clapped his hands together, "are you two going public with this? I need to know what to expect, because people will ask me about it."

"Well," Madge looked at Gale as she spoke, "we kind of thought we needed to keep it quiet because of Mrs. Mellark."

Mr. Undersee made a disgusted noise in his throat. "I don't know if it much matters at this point, she's gone so far around the bend. Are those two dating now?"

"I think that's still an open question," Madge said carefully, "but it is moving in that direction."

"Then it's probably just as well that Peeta moved out. I doubt she'll directly harm Katniss as long as she understands that I view Katniss as surrogate family, but I wouldn't be surprised if she tries more indirect ways of causing trouble. In any event, you two still haven't answered my question. Are you going public with this?"

Madge and Gale looked at each other. "No matter how we approach this, it will be the topic of gossip for quite some time," she warned him.

"I don't care about that. Do whatever will make this easiest on you." Gale's response got a smile out of Mr. Undersee.

"Then let's be discreet and not make any announcement," Madge announced. "I like my privacy. People are much less likely to ask us questions if they think this is a sensitive topic." _And they'll be more likely to think all Gale and I are hiding is a Merchant-Seam romance, not crimes against the Capitol_. "Dad, if anybody asks you, tell them that Gale and I have started spending time together. Actually, that's probably an appropriate answer for all of us, if asked."

"How delightfully vague," John remarked. "Well, it's getting late. Let's call it a night."

John escorted them to the porch, informed them both that Madge's bedtime was in 10 minutes, then left.

As soon as the Mayor was out of earshot, Gale remarked, "Well, _that_ wasn't how I was expecting my evening to go when you asked me over."

"I think it went pretty well. It's too soon to say he likes you, but he respects you. It's a start."

"I respect him. I always have, but even more so after tonight," Gale told her sincerely, but then his voice trailed off.

"But?" Madge prompted.

"But it made me miss my own father," Gale finally admitted. "Sometimes I'm so busy filling his shoes at home that I forget just how much I do miss him." Gale wasn't crying but Madge didn't miss that his eyes were a little misty.

"By the way," Madge changed topics, "I think Peeta is a little jealous of you. He didn't look too happy when you hugged Katniss and offered to walk her home."

Gale rolled his eyes. "He looked like shit. I was trying to do him a favor."

"Oh, I know that," Madge reassured him. "But I don't know if you can have the sort of week that Peeta's had and feel secure about very much. He and Katniss are brand new; you and Katniss are old friends. Did you hear about the artwork?"

Gale hadn't, so she filled him in. "That's fucked up," was Gale's pithy response.

"It is," Madge agreed.

"You know, it's weird," Gale mused. "Katniss and I lost our fathers in the mines. Mrs. Everdeen almost let Prim and Katniss starve to death. Your mother has been bedridden for years."

Gale wrapped his arms around Madge's waist, but looked out into the night, gathering his thoughts before he continued. "Mr. and Mrs. Mellark are both fully functioning adults. No diseases, no deaths, plenty to eat. But somehow they've managed to give their boys the worst childhood in the District."

"They certainly have," Madge said, quietly surprised by the depth of Gale's observations. "They certainly have."

They cuddled for a couple of minutes, before Madge announced, "It's time for me to kick you off my porch, Gale Hawthorne."

Gale gave her one last squeeze and a chaste kiss, then walked out into the night. Madge headed to bed, stopping to knock briefly on her parent's bedroom door to say goodnight. Her father opened the door at her knock.

"Did I scare him off?" John teased.

"No," she said, fixing her father with her best disapproving look.

"Good. If he can't handle that sort of discussion, he has no business dating my daughter. So, I guess I approve," he smiled at her. "For now. I was serious about what I said."

"I know, you were. Trust me, the last person who wants another kid to take care of is Gale Hawthorne. Do you know what he told me outside?"

"What's that?" John yawned.

"He said your talk tonight made him miss his own father."

"Oh," John looked surprised and a little pleased. "Well. If Gale ever needs to discuss anything with me, he's always welcome."

Madge kissed him on the cheek, went to her bedroom and got ready for bed. She thought about her father's warnings against getting pregnant. _I need to visit Mrs. Everdeen_, she decided. She climbed into bed and fell asleep picturing Gale's gray eyes.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: Many thanks, as always, to dandelionsunset and evilgrinstar for their continued support and beta skills.**

**A few of you have asked about Gale. He will have a chapter shortly. I won't say anything much, as he'd rather tell you himself. **

**Chapter 26—Peeta's pathway**

Peeta left for the Mayor's house, grateful to escape Bannock's presence. Dinner with Nikki and Bannock had been uncomfortable. More precisely, dinner with _Bannock_ had been uncomfortable. He kept looking at Peeta with a combination of irritation and pity. "I'll talk to Dad about your job," he told Peeta. "Maybe he can talk some sense into Mother. Or at least pay your salary, so that you're not, you know..."

"A burden?" Peeta supplied, not bothering to hide the bitterness in his voice.

Nikki glared at Bannock, then turned to Peeta and said, "Honey, you're welcome here no matter what happens. I ain't sending you back there."

"I'm grateful to you, Nikki," Peeta told her. He meant it, he really did, and he hoped he sounded sincere. Peeta knew that Bannock was doing him a huge favor. He just hated that his options were limited to squatting in the Seam, or living on charity where he wasn't wanted.

More than that, though, the full impact of the destruction of his artwork was finally sinking in. Peeta thought that the lowest point in his life had been the night Marigold attacked him with that rolling-pin. It wasn't. This was worse. Years of work. _Years_. It had taken him years to acquire what he had, a brush here, a tube of paint there. But while those could arguably be replaced, the paintings and sketches couldn't. He ached with loss.

When he was a few blocks away from the Undersees', he saw Gale Hawthorne heading in his direction. Gale saw him, waved, and trotted over. "Headed to the Mayor's?" Gale asked.

"Yeah." Gale was right at the top of the list of People Peeta Didn't Want to See. But the guy was Katniss' friend, so Peeta tried hard to keep his voice neutral.

"Me, too. Madge invited me over, since I _still_ haven't heard Katniss sing."

"She's good."

"Yeah, well," Gale smirked, "you would say that."

"And after tonight, so will you," Peeta replied, silently congratulating himself for not punching the smirk off Hawthorne's face.

They walked without talking the rest of the way, which thankfully didn't take long. Peeta was surprised to see Katniss talking to Rye on the Undersee's back porch. Why weren't they rehearsing?

The got there in time to hear Katniss say, "which I understand, Rye, but no offense? None of that has anything to do with rehearsing the stupid Toasting Song. Nobody in there did anything wrong, OK? So stop pissing everyone off."

Rye started to say something but stopped when he saw Gale and Peeta. Katniss looked over her shoulder, and immediately walked over to Peeta. "What's going on?" Peeta asked.

"Nothing," Rye replied, but he looked embarrassed. The four of them walked inside and headed to the basement. The rehearsal started shortly thereafter.

Normally, Peeta loved hearing Katniss sing but tonight, her ability just seemed to highlight for him how utterly useless he was. She had told him just a few hours ago that she felt safe in his arms, which was ridiculous. He couldn't protect her. He couldn't protect himself. He couldn't even protect his own belongings.

What could he even do, anyway? Let's see. He had a real talent for getting injured. He was getting pretty good at sleeping in other people's homes. Oh yeah. He could _walk Katniss to the Justice Building._

Peeta Mellark: Panty-Dropper.

At the end of the rehearsal, Gale picked Katniss up off the floor, hugged her and profusely apologized for not believing that she could sing.

Peeta knew he should be glad that Gale finally understood just how wrong he'd been about Katniss. He suspected that, most of the time, he would have been. But the look of joy on Katniss' face when Gale hugged her cut through Peeta like a cold wind. Katniss had insisted that Gale was never her boyfriend, but would he be, if she pursued it? Wouldn't she be happier with Gale?

When Gale offered to walk Katniss home, it was all Peeta could do not to hit the guy.

Rye spoke briefly with Peeta before they left. "I heard," he said, grimly. Peeta didn't have to ask about what. "I checked on rental rates at the boarding house."

"And?" Peeta asked.

"And as soon as I get a security deposit together, I'm moving. How is it at Bannock's?"

"Bannock keeps looking at me like I rolled around in the pig sty right before I arrived, but I guess it's better than the bakery."

"It sucks at home without you, Peet. I'll stop by tomorrow around 7:00 and we can head into school." Rye gave him a bro hug, then went to go pack up his guitar. And somewhere, deep underneath all of his anger, despair and dejection, Peeta felt a spark of love towards his brother. At least one person on the planet liked being around him.

Katniss was ready to leave, so he followed her out the back door. He didn't argue with her when she refused to let him pull the wagon. By the time they were off the Undersee's property, he half expected Katniss to tell him she'd changed her mind about him. Maybe he should just spare her the discomfort of letting him down gently, and tell her he understood why she was better off with somebody else. He didn't realize he was walking behind the wagon until he nearly tripped over it when it came to a sudden stop.

He looked up, wondering why Katniss had stopped. They were still in town, the Undersee's mansion still in view behind them. She was looking back at him, expectantly. He didn't know what she expected, though, until she held her hand out to him.

The look of hurt that flashed across her face when he hesitated got his feet moving. He closed the few steps between them and took her hand in his. She gazed up at him steadily, her eyes silver in the reflected starlight. She dropped the wagon handle. Standing on her tiptoes, and carefully avoiding his bruises, she gently wrapped her arms around his neck and shoulders.

Peeta closed his eyes and pulled her close. He felt some of the darkness that had settled on his heart float away. Katniss moved her lips close to his ear, her intake of breath sending a thrill through him. She then whispered the very last thing he expected her to say.

"Do you want me to teach you how to hunt this Sunday?"

It was so startling, so completely unanticipated, that Peeta started laughing. He knew he sounded a little mad, but really, after the day he'd had, expecting to hear _Katniss Everdeen_ whisper sweet nothings into his ear bordered on madness.

Katniss scowled, which just made him laugh even harder. She pulled away from him, picked up the wagon handle and tossed her braid over her shoulder. "Forget I asked," she said tonelessly. Then she started walking towards the Seam, not bothering to see if he followed her or not.

"Wait, Katniss, wait up," Peeta called out. He jogged up next to her.

She looked at him while she continued to walk. "I just wanted to help," she told him. Her face was in the expressionless mask he had seen her perfect over the years.

_Oh, hell,_ he thought frantically. She'd finally started letting him in, had started dropping some of her walls, and now they were all back up. He stood in front of her, blocking her path. "You are helping. And yes, I want you to teach me everything you know." Other than a twitch of her eyebrow, her expression didn't change.

"Katniss, I wasn't laughing _you_. Your question just, um, really caught me off guard. Look. When somebody hugs you," Peeta put his arms around her waist and pulled her towards him, ignoring how much she stiffened up. "And puts their lips right next to your ear," Peeta continued, bending over until his mouth almost touched her earlobe. He slowly inhaled and felt Katniss shiver. He ran one hand up her back and whispered, "You don't expect to hear an invitation to commit a crime."

Peeta became aware of several things all at once. His lips were touching her earlobe. Katniss had slid her hands up his arms until she was almost pulling him towards her. He could feel her breasts pressing up against his chest. And after taking a hiatus for the last several days, an erection decided that _right now _was the perfect time to make an appearance.

If Katniss had not warned him earlier that day that she was still too scared to kiss him, Peeta would have given in to his instincts. His instincts didn't want a sweet, gentle, chaste kiss, either. He wanted to kiss her hungrily, taste the skin on her throat, run his tongue over her earlobe. He wanted to lose himself in her, not caring that they were in the middle of town.

Only the possibility of scaring her off kept him under control. Most of him, anyway.

Peeta slowly pulled back. Katniss looked disoriented, her lips slightly parted and her eyes a little glazed over. "All right, Katniss?" He took one of her hands in his and gently kissed it. She nodded. She took up the wagon handle with her other hand and started for the Seam again. This time, she didn't let go of his hand.

"So what were you and Rye talking about?" he asked.

"He was upset about your mother, and it was making for a bad rehearsal."

"Whatever you said must have worked. Rehearsal seemed to go pretty well after I got there. Gale was certainly impressed." He hoped he didn't sound resentful.

Katniss grinned. "That _was_ pretty gratifying. Him apologizing to me because Madge shamed him into it was one thing. But him apologizing because he actually understands he was wrong? That's even better. Clearly, dating Madge is going to be good for him. He'd have never bothered to come, otherwise."

"Wait. Gale and Madge are dating?" Peeta asked incredulously.

Katniss looked both horrified and guilty. "I wasn't supposed to say anything! They both asked me to keep it quiet, and here I am letting it slip. Don't tell anybody, OK? Please?" she pleaded.

Peeta suddenly felt much better. "No deal," he teased, "I'm going to ask Madge about it tomorrow at lunch. In front of Rye."

"Peeta, no! They'll both kill me!"

"Probably," Peeta said, feigning unconcern. "Too bad Gale has a different lunch hour, or I could just yell across the lunch room, 'Hey, Hawthorne! What's it like dating the Mayor's daughter?'"

Katniss threw her head back and laughed. It was a real laugh, a throaty laugh. It was a rare thing for her, he knew, and that made it precious.

Also, it was at Gale's expense. Bonus.

They talked the rest of the walk home. Peeta realized that, once her outer shell thawed, Katniss had plenty to say. She wasn't the kind of girl who babbled just to fill the silence and she wasn't any good at things like small talk. But when he asked her questions, she answered them thoughtfully. And she asked him questions in return.

They talked about their favorite colors (forest green for Katniss, soft orange for Peeta). He learned that she loved to swim. She whispered it to him, so he gathered that meant it happened out beyond the fence. She learned that when they were little kids, he'd convinced Delly Cartwright that "Panem" stood for "Peeta Always Needs Extra Molasses."

When they got to her house, he helped her unload the tesserae into their kitchen. Mrs. Everdeen was still up, and asked how he was feeling. She reminded him to drink his yarrow tea, then shot a significant look at Katniss. "Don't linger overly long. It's bedtime," she warned, before she walked into her bedroom and closed the door.

Katniss' face had turned cranberry red. Peeta raised his eyebrows at her. "Um. I'll see you out," she stammered. They walked out and down the steps. "Will I see you at school tomorrow?" she frowned.

"Yes. Why are you frowning?"

Katniss was chewing her bottom lip. "I worry that being seen with me will lower your social standing."

He didn't bother denying it. She was probably right, to some extent. He just didn't give a shit. "That doesn't matter to me, Katniss," Peeta reassured her. He wrapped her up in his arms for one last, good-night hug. "You're more important than all of them put together." He could feel her smile against his chest. She slipped inside her house, giving him a soft smile over her shoulder as she closed their door.

Peeta walked back to Bannock's house. Bannock and Nikki were already in bed, but Nikki had put sheets, blankets and a pillow on the sofa for him. She left him a note telling him where to find breakfast in the morning if he got up before they did. Peeta realized that his days of having to get up at 4:30 in the morning were now a thing of the past. He could sleep until 6:30 if he wanted to, and still have loads of time to get to school. He brushed his teeth and went to sleep almost instantly.

Peeta woke up around 6:00 a.m. The first thing he noticed was that it no longer hurt to breathe. That realization alone put him in a good mood. He was even happy to drink that revolting yarrow tea. By the time Bannock and Nikki woke up at 6:45, Peeta had washed, dressed and made them all breakfast. Nikki squealed with happiness at the sight of eggs, muffins with jam, and tea. "You little suck up," Bannock grumbled into Peeta's ear. Peeta responded by pouring Nikki another cup of tea while giving Bannock a wide, innocent grin.

Rye arrived at 7:00, and he and Peeta walked to school, Peeta carrying his backpack gingerly on his shoulder. Before he went to his first class, he stopped by the office of the wrestling coach. The coach read Mrs. Everdeen's restrictions, then handed it back to him. "OK, Mellark. Take whatever time you need. Just come back healthy."

Peeta couldn't help but notice that the coach didn't bother asking him how he'd been injured.

Morning classes seemed to crawl by. Peeta was impatient for lunchtime, when he would get to see Katniss. When the lunch bell rang, his friend Will greeted him in the hallway with, "Welcome back, man."

"Thanks." Will and Peeta usually sat with a group of Merchant kids at lunch.

"Heard you've been slumming it in the Seam," Will said, it what he clearly thought was a teasing tone of voice.

"Is that what you've heard?" They had just arrived in the lunch room. Peeta veered over to the table where Katniss and Madge were sitting down.

"Peeta, where are you going, man?"

"Over there. You're welcome to join me," Peeta called over his shoulder. Will stood there and stared in disbelief. Then he shook his head in disgust, and sat with the Merchant kids.

Peeta felt a small pang of disappointment, but it vanished as soon as Katniss smiled at him. It was the best thing he'd seen all day.

Rye arrived a few minutes later and sat with them. The four of them talked about the upcoming toasting and schoolwork and griped about teachers. After the last few days of emotional turmoil, Peeta felt grateful to just do something as normal and effortless as chatting with friends.

Rye asked him about the design he'd made for the band. "I'd like to have a sign for the toasting this Saturday. Do you think Bannock or Nikki would have the materials you'd need? Maybe scrap wood and leftover paint?"

"Maybe. I can ask, anyway."

He and Rye looked at each other and said in unison, "Ask Nikki."

Afternoon classes were unremarkable, except for the strange looks he got from some of the Merchant kids. Will sat next to him in math class, but he acted like Peeta wasn't there. Peeta got the message, loud and clear. As far as Will was concerned, Peeta was now Seam, and therefore beneath his notice.

Katniss had to go hunting after school. Peeta and Rye walked towards town together, but it was weird to part ways with Rye, who had a shift at the bakery. Peeta realized that he suddenly had a lot of free time on his hands. He wasn't sure he liked it much.

Nikki fussed over him a bit when he got home. She made him sit at the kitchen table, where she put milk and cookies in front of him like he was 6 years old. Peeta would really have preferred a cup of strong tea and no cookie, but he didn't want to seem ungrateful. Besides, in a few weeks, the baby would be here, and Nikki wouldn't have the time or energy to mother Peeta.

As he ate, Peeta asked about scrap wood and extra paint so he could make a sign for the band. "Ya know, honey, I bet we do down at the shop. Hold on a sec." She retrieved a pen and stationary, and asked Peeta to list the supplies he would need. She spent a few minutes writing a note, then sealed it up in an envelope. "Here. You go on down ta the shop and you hand that ta my daddy. Got it? Not ta Bannock."

Peeta gave her a hug and thanked her. He walked across town to the carpenter's, which was set pretty far off the main square because of all the noise that emanated from the shop. The "shop" was an actually an old, converted barn with the words "Brown Carpentry" painted in large letters on every side. A large lumberyard sat behind the barn, with a couple of small buildings set off way to the back. The enormous front doors were usually open to the elements, unless the weather wouldn't allow it. A dozen or so machines were scattered around inside, nearly all of them powered by foot-cranks.

Bannock, wearing safety goggles, was at the lathe, shaping what looked like a table leg. He didn't stop working, but he did narrow his eyes suspiciously at Peeta. A couple of the other workers glanced up at Peeta, then ignored him and went back to work.

Peeta found Nikki's father in the lumberyard with a clipboard and pen, checking tags on wrapped stacks of lumber. "Mr. Brown?" Peeta called out.

Nathan Brown looked up at Peeta, squinting at him through his bushy eyebrows. The man had coarse, gray hair that stuck out in every direction, like he'd received a shock. Nearly every square inch of him was covered in sawdust. He blinked at Peeta for a moment, before placing him. "You're that youngest Mellark."

Nikki clearly got her accent from her father, but where Nikki was loving and warm, Mr. Brown was blunt and business-like. He wasn't unkind, exactly, he just didn't seem to have the patience for small talk.

"Yes, sir."

"What're you doin' here?"

"I'm here to ask a favor." Peeta handed the envelope to Mr. Brown.

"What's Nikki want?" the man said, looking at the handwriting.

"I expect she's trying to help me out, sir. She's been very kind to me since I had to move in with them." The irritated expression on Mr. Brown's face softened a bit at the compliment of his daughter. He opened the envelope and read its' contents.

"Says here you need some scrap supplies, and that I ought ta offer you a job paintin' furniture."

Peeta couldn't help the bark of laughter that escaped from him. "Uh, Nikki didn't mention that last part," he admitted, "but if you've got a job opening, I'd be interested. I'd rather earn my keep than live on the generosity of Bannock and Nikki."

Mr. Brown snorted. "I think you jus' mean Nikki. Your brother ain't a bad man, but he ain't exactly killing the world with kindness, neither. But I respect you wantin' ta make your own way, son. Here's the deal. That right there," he pointed to one of the small buildings at the back of the lumberyard, "is the paint-shop. We hafta keep it away from the barn cuz of the sawdust. When a piece is ready, I usually just tell whoever is the least busy to go paint or stain it. They all hate it, every one of 'em. Sometimes, it shows in the finished piece. Which means I hafta go back and fix their mistakes. Waste of my damn time."

Mr. Brown started heading towards the paint-shop, stopping along the way to pick up a piece of plywood, about 2 feet by 4 feet. "Tell ya what. I'll give you the supplies you need. You can use the paint-shop after school for the next few days for your little project. If I like what you do, you're hired. If I don't, I won't. Fair enough?" Mr. Brown had stopped in front of the paint-shop and had unlocked the door.

"More than fair. Thank you, Mr. Brown." Peeta stuck out his hand, and Mr. Brown shook it. He showed Peeta around, then left.

Peeta couldn't quit grinning. It might not be an artist's studio, but he suddenly had access to more paints, brushes and supplies than he'd ever had before. He pulled tack paper down from a shelf to prep the wood and got to work.

That was a Wednesday. The next few days were the happiest Peeta had had in a very long time. He spent his lunch breaks with Katniss, Rye and Madge. After school, he painted. After dinner, he went to the rehearsals.

The best part of the day was walking Katniss home. Katniss seemed less reserved towards him. She slipped her hand into his automatically. She held his hand under the table at school. When they walked, she would occasionally lean into his arm. She seemed to crave his touch.

Katniss was a good listener. He felt like he could tell her anything, and she wouldn't judge him for it. So he did. He told her everything on his mind—from his excitement about possibly landing a job with Mr. Brown, to how conflicted he felt about his father. Peeta was angry with Farl, but he also deeply missed him.

She opened up to him, as well. She gushed about Prim's new shoes and clothes. She shared stories about her early childhood, when her father was still alive. She confessed that she knew she should forgive her mother, but that she wasn't the forgiving type.

The only thing that put a damper on Peeta's happiness was how most of his friends reacted to his relationship with Katniss. Delly, of course, was thrilled for him. She had known about his crush for years. "Ohmi_gawd_, Peeta," she squealed on Thursday morning, "I'm soooooo happy for y'all!" She had a different lunch hour then he did. Otherwise, he would have invited her to come sit with them.

The rest of his friends, though, had reacted much like Will. They didn't say anything to his face, they just kept their distance and acted as if he didn't exist. He had hoped that at least a couple of the people he'd called friends for the last decade would be better than that.

On Saturday morning, Peeta headed to the paint-shop. He had finished the sign the previous night, and it was dry enough to move. He'd used a thick layer of gray paint as the background. Then he dragged sandpaper and pumice across the paint while it was still wet, to make it look like concrete. He used white spray paint for the petals of the katniss flower, and a q-tip dipped in yellow paint for the stamen. Black lacquer made the clock face. Acrylic paint worked for the arrows. He'd used more spray paint to write, "5 * 2 * 12" below the clock, letting the dots between the numbers drip just a bit. Finally, using orange paint, he signed, "P. Mellark" in the lower corner.

He found Mr. Brown in the barn and told him it was ready. "I looked at it last night, actually," Mr. Brown told him. "You're hired." They discussed his wages and his hours. It wouldn't be much, as there wasn't enough painting to put him to work full-time. But it was fair, and it was enough for now. He would start next Monday.

He also made arrangements to have Mr. Brown pay half of his wages directly to Bannock. This had been Nikki's quiet suggestion. "If he don't hafta ask you for it, and you don't hafta hand it ta him, he can still be your brother, and not your landlord."

Nikki, of course, hadn't wanted Peeta to pay anything at all, but Peeta insisted. He was starting to understand what Katniss meant about not wanting to owe people. It wasn't really about payment. It was about pride.

Peeta lugged the sign back to Bannock and Nikki's house. Rye planned to pick it up about an hour before the toasting. Since he wasn't in the band, Peeta wouldn't be going. He planned to collect Katniss at the Justice Building after the reception ended, and walk her home.

Peeta walked into the house. Nikki and Mr. Mellark sat at the kitchen table.

Mr. Mellark looked miserable. He had dark circles under his eyes, and seemed to have aged several years in the last few days. Peeta didn't know what to do or say. Part of him wanted to hug his father. Part of him wanted to shut him out of his life forever.

Nikki stood up, and very pointedly looked from Peeta to the chair across from Farl. _Sit down and talk to your father_. Peeta reluctantly sat down. "I'll be takin' a stroll now," Nikki told them as she walked out the front door.

Farl looked at his hands and rubbed them together. Peeta didn't say anything. He hadn't spoken to his father since Farl had shown up at the Everdeens to tell Peeta he was out of a job. And even then, he hadn't said much. Farl cleared his throat a couple of times. Peeta just waited.

"I want," Farl stopped, coughed and cleared his throat again. Peeta could see his father was struggling to keep his composure. "I want you to come back to the bakery," he finally got out.

"I've been banished," Peeta coldly reminded him.

"It's been a struggle to get by this last week," Farl told him. "We're behind on orders. We can't make enough to keep product on the shelves past the early afternoon, if that. We closed early today because we ran out of everything. Your mother is beginning to see reason. She's willing for you to come back now."

"I'm not." Peeta crossed his arms across his chest and thought about Rye's favorite saying when things got especially testy between him and Marigold. _Fuck this shit_.

"Peet," Farl chided, "you can't stay here. Bannock and Nikki got a baby on the way. They want their privacy. And you need the job."

"Nikki told me I can stay as long as I want. And I _have_ a job. But even if I didn't, even if Ban and Nikki asked me to leave, I still won't go back. Not as long as she's there."

Farl wrung his hands. Peeta noticed they were shaking. "Peeta, _please_," he beseeched, "we can't make it without you there. I'm going to lose the bakery before the end of the year if we keep having weeks like this last one."

"You seemed perfectly comfortable losing _me_," Peeta spat out. His anger was getting the better of him. "I don't understand you," his voice rose. "Bannock never wanted the bakery. Rye never wanted the bakery. _I did_. And instead of preparing me to take it over, you let her beat me half to death for my whole life, and run me out!"

"I know I messed up," Farl muttered, "but I promise. I won't let her do that to you anymore. I talked to her about it and I'll keep talking to her about it until she stops. And after last time, I think she's a little afraid of you."

"Whatever," Peeta scoffed. "If your word meant anything, she would have stopped years ago. And even if I did believe you—and I don't, not for one second—I'm not going back as long as she's there. Do you really think I could keep my artwork there now? Or bring Katniss around as my girlfriend?"

Farl said nothing, and stared miserably at his hands.

"Dad, I'm finally have a place I feel safe. Nikki wants me here. She loves Katniss, told her she's welcome anytime. Bannock might not be exactly thrilled, but I stay out of their way as much as I can. And I took a job with Nathan Brown painting furniture.

"I wanted the bakery," Peeta admitted. "I still do. But not nearly as much as I want what I have now. I'm not coming back. Ever."

They sat there for a long stretch of silence. Peeta could hear the clock quietly ticking. Finally, Farl pushed his chair back. "I miss you, Peeta. I know I failed you. But you're still my son and I still love you."

Peeta looked his father in the eye. "I miss you, too, Dad. A lot. But I don't miss home."

Farl stood up, fished around in his pocket for a second and handed an envelope to Peeta. "Rye asked me to give this to you."

Peeta stuffed it in his back pocket and walked his dad to the front door. Nikki was sitting on the front porch steps. Clearly, her "stroll" had gone no further than that.

Farl helped Nikki stand up and gave her a hug. After a moment's hesitation, he gave Peeta a hug, too. "I'm so sorry, Peet." Farl said in a broke voice. Peeta wrapped his arms around his father and for the briefest moment, allowed himself to feel the full weight of his own childhood.

Then Farl let Peeta go, shoved his hands into his pockets and walked towards town.

Nikki and Peeta walked back inside. "He ask you to move back home?" Nikki speculated.

"Yep." Peeta pulled the envelope out of his back pocket.

"I hope you told him you got a new home here," Nikki said firmly.

Peeta stopped opening the envelope long enough to hug his sister-in-law. "I love you, Nikki. Bannock doesn't deserve you."

She giggled and hugged him back. "I love you, too, honey. And no, he don't. But he's tryin' awful hard, and that's what matters."

Nikki waddled into the kitchen and put on a pot of tea while Peeta read Rye's note.

_P,_

_You're coming with me to the toasting tonight. See enclosed. Wear something decent. And for shit's sake, take a bath. You've been covered in paint flakes for two days. _

_R. _

Underneath that was a piece of expensive stationary, with a flowing script.

_Rye,_

_Mayor Undersee mentioned to me yesterday that your younger brother, Peeta, acts as an escort for Katniss Everdeen to get safely home, and that he handles some of the marketing for Five to Twelve. Please let Peeta know if he would like to come to the toasting this evening, he is more than welcome. I have added him to the list of band members._

_See you this evening,_

_Ander Bay_

The only "marketing" Peeta had done was paint a sign. He was once again impressed with Mayor Undersee's ability to bullshit. Peeta stuck his head in the kitchen to tell Nikki he was going to bathe.

"What for, honey?" Nikki looked at the clock, puzzled. It was the middle of the day.

"Looks like I'm going to a toasting tonight."


End file.
